


i could write it better than you ever felt it

by freshia



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Humor, M/M, characters coming to life, levi isn't crazy he's ~Magic~, writer!levi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-27
Updated: 2015-06-01
Packaged: 2018-01-26 18:13:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 21,505
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1697777
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/freshia/pseuds/freshia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Award-winning novelist Levi Ackerman has <i>big</i> writer's block and <i>big</i> characterization issues on his newest novel. Good thing his protagonist Eren Yeager has quite literally jumped from the page to real life. </p><p>Well, they always did say, <i>"write what you know"</i>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. just off the key of reason

"It's… Good."

Levi drums his fingers on top of the bar as Hange slides the small stack of papers across the table with an elusive smile. But Levi knows Hange- probably too well for his own good- and that look in their eyes never has and probably never will spell anything "good" for him. He considers not asking, but if anyone could be brutally honest while still being cheerful about it, it was Hange- so he does anyway.

" _Good_?"

They sigh, leaning back in the stool before waving the bartender back over to order anottheir drink. "Yeah, good. Oh- come on, Levi, don't give me that look." Hange arranges the scattered papers, waving them in front of his face before he swats it away. "Listen, it really was good. Your writing is always good. Once you wade through the spelling issues and bad handwriting—which is my job, anyway—the plot really draws you in. Refreshing, creative, everything someone looks for in a novel."

Levi sucks in a breath, shoving the papers back into his laptop case. "So what's the issue then? Just  _good_? What's dragging it down, Hange, and don't tell me nothin-."

"Your characters suck."

Blunt as always. Levi  _tsks_ and opens his mouth to respond, but Hange holds a hand up. "No, no, wait. Listen to me for a second, editor to writer."

"You can do better than this.  _Everyone_ knows you can do better than this, Mr. National Best Seller. I know it's hard to live up to that. The pressure was what caused your writer's block in the first pl-"

"I told you, I'm over it."

"Of course you are. I gathered as much from that rough draft—Oh thank you, that was fast." They pause to sip at the neon green ooze from the glass. Levi doesn't break his gaze.

"Levi, look. What you just showed me? It was good! It was! But it wasn't  _Levi_ good."

He must have looked disgruntled then, because Hange shoves their hand into his face again to stop any retort.

"I know it was an early draft, and I know how self conscious you are of those. But after bugging you for a week just for that manuscript, I just wanted you to know what I really thought!"

Levi folds his arms primly and gives them a flat look as they continue.

"You could have replaced the characters with wooden planks and it wouldn't have made much of a difference. You're working with living, breathing,  _feeling_ humans. Give them character! Personality! Fears! Hopes!" They cry, hands flailing wildly. "Write people as, well, people! Not just words on paper."

His face stays stoic. "So inject a few sentences to describe them better, is what you're saying."

"Mmph!" Hange shoves a pointer finger in his face as they empty the glass. "No, Levi, No! You're missing the – Hey could you bring me another one of these? And give me one of those paper umbrellas, a pink one! – You're missing the point!" Hange turns to Levi and clasps their hands in their lap, pondering slowly past the slowly thickening haze of alcohol.

"Now, you  _might_ kill me if I say this..."

"Then don't say it." He suggests, staring at the brunette who was toying with the pink umbrella of their refilled drink. "And you should really go easy on the alcohol, Hange, because I'm not peeling your ass off of the pavement again."

A snort. "Actually, this one's for you, because you  _need_  it." They insistently slide the drink toward him, grinning. "Also, I'm going to say it anyway. Because I care. Anyway-"

"I swear to god, Hange, if you say ' _don't tell, show_ ' or any variation-"

"Three pages of purple prose isn't going to make the character more real, Levi." They declare decidedly. "And three  _books_  of purple prose just make the Twilight trilogy." Levi snorts into the limey concoction as Hange concludes. "So yeah.  _Don't tell, show_."

Levi lets out a frustrated groan, picking the glass up and taking a long drink before slamming the empty glass back down. "I fucking hate you. Now I'm  _really_ not helping peel you off the pavement if you get sloshed."

"Aww, Levi, your mean words… They hurt so good…!"

He gives them a slight shove, almost hard enough to knock them off the stool. "Knock it off, freakshow, before I leave you here  _with_ the tab. I've heard that piece of advice at least a million fucking times."

"Ouch! Oh, Levi, after everything I've done for you? You wound me so." In a span of a blink, the playful grin drops back down into a serious gaze as they furrow their eyebrows. "Seriously, though. If you've heard it so many times, then you know exactly what you need to do."

"Yeah, yeah." Levi slaps some money down and stands up. "I gotta drive back home, so I'm heading out of here before you buy me more drinks." he pauses for a minute, fishing his keys out of his slacks. "... Thanks for your help. If you need a ride, call me."

They salute him. "Just another day as the best editor in the world! Also, I think I'll be fine. I'm leaving after this."

He frowns, but starts toward the door anyway. "If you're sure. I'll fix the writing up and call you whenever."

"Have fun!"

" _Don't I always_?"

x

His notebook is open the second he gets home, as he heads straight for his desk and hunches over the paper. His pen is scribbling so fast over the lined paper that he wonders for a moment if even Hange would be able to read the writing, before his mind is blank again except for the image of his characters.

 _Wooden planks_. He thinks ruefully. He honestly hadn't been that focused on the characters, and apparently it showed. The plot, the plot, the plot - He toils through the familiar steps. He sets the stage, paints the backdrop, hangs the fucking moon in the sky. The plot, the plot  _the plot_. He hammers the foundation in place, throws on the lights, and tears the red curtains apart to reveal, at last, a towering castle with its insurmountable walls that hide the most despicable of corruption. He exposes the sins of the insignificant creatures, and smites them as he goes. He is their God, their almighty Creator! He thinks, as his fingers still and the pencil stops its mad scribbling.

He is nothing but a puppeteer of  _wooden planks_.

 _Write people as, well, people_! Humans, he seethed, just his luck that he was born a species he was never too fond of. He wasn't a recluse, by any means. He had parties to go to, interviews, book signings. But everyone there was background noise. He's never been known for being friendly or welcoming, and he intends to keep it that way. It's worked all this time, hasn't it? If anything, his cold personality boosted his popularity.  _Mysterious_ , they called him.

 _Don't tell, show_. If he's heard it once, he's heard it a million times, just as every other writer has. But real people were complex, harder to force to life. How many people could he say he truly knew? He counts them on one calloused hand. Isabel, Farlan, Hange. Erwin. Sort of. Who else?

He doesn't dwell on it for too long. If complexity is what Hange wants, complexity is what they'd get. Starting with the main character. He had brown hair, green eyes, before. But now...  _Fiery_ green eyes, filled with passion. Messy brown hair, constantly drawn in eyebrows that seemed overly thick. Personality…

No more generic hero. A kid with black-and-white morality. Not evil, but not purehearted, but not...

Not…

Again, the pencil halts.

Another roadblock. Another frustrated sigh, because the image is  _already_ leaving. What he has sitting in front of him is just a bunch of messy notes, appearance and background and personality- with personality being the least written in.

He's stuck, like he  _always_  is when it comes to complex characters.

Levi Ackerman, New York Times bestsellings author, lays his head down on his paper in frustration, and sleeps.

x

"Hello, uh.. Sir…"

Levi grunts, shifting slightly. The image was leaving him again, just a few more seconds and he'd have it captured-

"You're drooling on your writing, dude."

With an annoyed noise, Levi lifts his head up from the desk and wipes the thread of spit from his mouth. Just who the fuck was waking him up-

In… His house.

The realization of a stranger standing near him is enough to jolt him into consciousness, blood running cold and pumping all too fast simultaneously. He flicks his eyes to the side fast enough to just to determine the position of the person-

And he attacks. He kicks the chair back and ducks, right leg sweeping to knock the intruder down quickly. He moves quickly. The other person has just enough time to land with a loud thump and a rough "Ow!" before Levi pounces on him, slamming the intruder's head into the tiles and pinning his hands to his back.

"What the  _hell-_ "

"Who the fuck are you and what are you doing in my house."

Levi's voice is still thick with sleep as he hisses at the other man. Boy. The intruder can't be older than twenty, he thinks. All he gets as a response is a low groan.

"Answer me!" He commands, squeezing the pinned wrists tighter.

" _Ow, ow, ow ow_ –  **Fuck**  – I don't know!"

"You don't know  _who you are_?" Levi grits his teeth, eyeing the phone sitting on the desk. If he just knocked this idiot out…

"No, no! I know who I am, but I don't know- Ouch,  _shit_! I don't know what I'm doing here! I don't even know where  _here_  is, asshole!"

"Wow, you sound so convincing." Cheeky shit. "Name. Before I knock you out and call the cops."

"Ugh- Eren! Eren Yeager."

The name catches him off-guard, surprises him so much that he releases Eren's wrists and watches as he snatches them back, rubbing them while scuttling off and staring at Levi like  _he's_ the psycho who just broke in. Levi narrows his eyes, standing up.

"Did Hange put you up to this?"

" _Who_?"

He clicks his tongue, annoyed. "Listen, kid, I don't know how much they paid you but you can deliver the message that their practical joke is 'not funny' and that I'm going to kick their ass."

The pure confusion in his eyes suddenly makes Levi doubt his own theory. Staring at Eren again, he slowly rises to his feet and reaches for his phone, never taking his eyes off of the other, even as he dials Hange's number.

Within a few rings they pick up, and Levi growls into the phone. "Hange, this isn't fucking funny."

"What, calling me at 9am on a Sunday when I'm trying to sleep off a hangover?  _Agreed_."

"No, you douchecanoe, this fucking actor you sent to my house." A pointed glare has Eren shrinking even further back than before. "I probably injured him, too, so you're paying for those bills."

There's a pause on the other end of the phone before they speak again. "Levi, I have no idea what you're talking about. Are you okay?"

Levi grips the phone, scowling. "... You didn't send anyone to my house?"

"Oh, Levi, have you finally lost it? Do you need me to come over? Because I can make an emergency trip, just let me take some Advil-"

"No, I… I need to go."

"Le-"

 _Click_.

Eren gives him a dirty look. "I told you nobody sent me here."

"Then how the  _fuck did you get in_?" the phone is still in his hands, he could call the police at any time.

"How should I fucking know? I was just… here!" the brown haired boy snaps, finally rising to his feet. Levi finally takes in his features- Messy brown hair, fiery green eyes, thicker eyebrows slightly arched in-

He can't help himself as the next words slip out.

"Do you have a sister?"

The question seems to catch Eren off-guard, taking the scowl off of his face. "I… Yeah? Kind of, anyway... Oh, do you know Mikasa?"

Levi sucks in a breath, gripping the office chair. He looks back at Eren, pinches himself, blinks three times.  _And he was still there_.

"This is it. Isabel always said my imagination was going to literally drive me insane one of these days.  _This is it_. They're going to check me into a hospital."

"... Are you alright?"

Levi closes his eyes. "You are a figment of my imagination. Go away."

"You  _sure_? I feel pretty real, myself."

"Yes, I'm sure! Look-" he turns around to grab the notebook he was writing on, holding it up in front of Eren's face. "At this."

Eren squints, reaching out to hold it. "Uh… I… Is this even English?"

Levi snorts, snatching it back. "Some part of me you are, you can't even read my handwriting."

"Stop saying that, it's kind of freaking me out."

" _Oh_ , freaking  _you_ out-"

He doesn't have time to finish the sentence, as Hange bursts through the door, looking slightly out of breath. When they lift their head back up to say something, they pause, eyes flicking back and forth between Levi and Eren.

"... Were you drunker than I remember, Levi? Bringing someone home last night..." They straighten themselves up, smiling wide. Levi scowls.

" _What_? No. And wipe that weird look off your face about that, that's-"

He pauses, as the realization that Hange just acknowledged Eren hits him.

"... You can see him?"

"Of course, why? Or.. Oh, do you want me to pretend like I didn't see anything? Of course, of course, your little night together can stay under wraps." They wink at Eren, and he returns a slightly weirded out look back.

"Stop- Stop assuming that! Nothing happened last night." He retorts loudly, his voice cracking like he was thirteen all over again. Hange turns and just stares at his outburst. He sighs. "So he's real. Fuck."

Hange smirks again. "Wow, must have been one  _vivid_ dream-"

"No more sex jokes Hange.  _Enough_." he warns, and they fall silent. "... I'm going to tell you something, and you're not going to believe me."

"Try me." they say, rocking back on their heels. He rolls his eyes.

"I think I made him up. I wrote him."

Their eyes flicker back toward Eren for a moment, before softening. "I know I said some harsh things about your characterization last night, but Levi…"

He gives an irritated sigh. "I told you you wouldn't believe me. Eren, introduce yourself."

Eren's eyes widen, hesitant. "Uh…"

Levi pinches the bridge of his nose. "Just do it. Or else I  _will_ call the police and report a breaking and entering." It's a lie, but it seems to do the trick. Slowly, Eren turns toward Hange.

"I'm Eren Yeager, 18 years old. I uh.. Don't know how I got here."

It's a lame introduction, but seems to do the trick. Hange freezes, face impassive for a few minutes before turning toward Levi with a deathly serious tone in their voice. "Is he  _real_?"

"Would I have called you, asking if you hired him earlier if he  _wasn't_?"

They stare at him for a few more minutes, gauging his seriousness, before a wide smile breaks out on their face.

"Levi, this is…"

"Really weird, I know-"

"So cool! I always knew you had a special talent, but this, this is something  _else_!" They pounced across the room toward Eren, faster than Levi could even do anything. Grasping his hand, they shook it and beamed. "It's so nice to be able to meet you, Eren! I knew Levi had it in him to create a realistic person. He took it so far above and beyond though!"

Eren looks caught between laughing and running, and Levi watches distantly, as though everything was happening in slow motion. It was like a train going 200 miles too fast off a cliff. But worse.

They release his hand, leaning closer to completely invade his personal space. "And wow! Every last detail is great. Perfect, even. See, Levi? This isn't just 'good', this is  _amazing_! You're… You're like a God! You  _created_  him!"

The uncanny sense of déjà vu doesn't have time to sink in when Levi notices Eren gaping at him.

"Father?" He whispers

" _What?"_  Levi squawks

"You've changed so –"

"Wow Levi, I know you were secretive about your past, but an illegitimate child, that's – "

"No. Stop talking. Both of you".

Levi sinks down into his chair and  _thinks._ Was it the voodoo lady he flipped off last week? The drink he had last night? This kid - unless someone had somehow gotten a hold of his writing and was impersonating the character - was the same one he wrote down on paper, down to the very clothes he was wearing. He was  _exactly_ as he had pictured him inside his head.

What the hell was going on?

Levi glances back to Hange and Eren, the latter looking a lot more freaked out than before. With a sigh, he grabs Hange by the ponytail and pulls them back.

"Editor-Author meeting. Now."

Hange sends an apologetic glance towards Eren as Levi drags them off, to which Eren only looks relieved. Just before completely disappearing, Levi pauses and says, "Don't go anywhere."

Eren gives him a shrug. "Where would I go?"

Levi squints at him. "I don't care. Don't leave this room."

Once he's sure they're a decent distance away, Levi releases the other and scowls. "What the fuck do we do with him?"

Hange gives him a nonchalant shrug. "Keep him around the house. You could use more friends anyway."

Levi smacks a hand on the counter with frustration. "' _Keep him around the house_?' He's a teenager, Hange! A barely legal adult, not a fucking poodle!"

They give him a flat look. "Are you going to send him on the street, Levi? I bet he doesn't have a dime to his name. And if he's from the time period of your story," they intone "he won't get further than the elevator before he starts panicking". When Levi doesn't respond, Hange simply grins. " _Besides,_ this place is too huge for just you. It won't hurt to have someone else around."

"I don't want to be a  _babysitter_."

They sigh and roll their eyes. "Fine then, there's a cafe down the street that's hiring. He can work there, and pay you rent. Think of it more like a roommate, if you have to. … Do you think you could make more of them?"

Levi stares. "Oh god, you've finally snapped."

"Don't be like that! Eren has a sister, right? And that rival of his- you had a lot of characters, actually, they were just dull as all get-out. This could be great for your writing, Levi!"

"Am I going to run a petting zoo of teenagers here then? I don't even know how I got him! Or maybe, wait, maybe…"

"What? What? Tell me!"

"I did this really detailed paper, outlining his personality, background, and appearance last night." Levi groans, running a hand through his hair. "Think maybe if I ripped up that paper I could get rid of him?"

"Don't!" Hange puts their hands out in front of them, shaking their head. "I'm telling you, this will do wonders for your writers block. Also it's… Kind of cruel, don't you think? To just take away his consciousness when he's obviously real?"

He sighs, irritated. "This is your fault, you know."

"It'll be fun, trust me."

x

"I'm going to let you stay here."

After Hange was gone, Levi finally finds himself trying to talk to Eren alone, this time without thinking that one of them was either crazy or a burglar. Eren simply scowls at the statement, crossing his arms.

"So long as you don't try to smother me in my sleep"

Levi decides to ignore that and continues "You have amnesia, right? No recollection of what happened or where you are?"

Eren is silent, averting his gaze. Levi nods once.

"Well,. I don't mind sharing this big ass house with you, but there are a couple of conditions." when he gets no response, Levi continues, numbering them off with his fingers.

"Number one: Clean up after yourself. It's the most important rule. See how clean this house is?" he gestures around as Eren's eyes flit around the room. "That's how clean it's  _going_ to stay. Number two: There's a cafe down the street hiring right now. Tomorrow, I want you to go apply there so you have something to do. When people hang around, they make a mess. You need to get out of the house and my hair sometimes. Number three: Stay out of my way when I'm writing. That's literally it, can you follow that?"

A curt nod from Eren gives him his answer. He slumps back in the chair, releasing a sigh. "Fuck, what a day."

"... Did you really make me up?"

This catches Levi's attention again. He frowns. "Huh?"

"Did you really make me up?  _Everything_  about me? My friends, Armin, Mikasa, even Jean… None of it's real? Nobody?"

 _Shit_. The crestfallen look on Eren's face is almost painful. Levi looks down at his hands as he answers.

"Yeah. They're all-including you-part of a book I was working on. Characters, specifically."

"So you know everything about me?"

"Technically."

Eren is quiet for a moment, and Levi thinks maybe he's going to try and leave anyway. But finally, he speaks up again. "So everything I know is a lie. I don't even  _have_ friends."

When Levi doesn't answer, Eren stands up from the couch and stretches. "Uh, sorry. You said my bedroom was the first one on the right?"

"Yeah. Across the hall from the bathroom."

Eren nods. "Cool, thanks. I'm gonna go to sleep early, I think. See you tomorrow. Night... Levi."

Once he's down the hallway and Levi hears the door click, he lets out a sigh, staring at the notebook and pen on his desk warily. Man, what the  _fuck_ was he thinking?

"... Goodnight, Eren."

x

Mikasa Yeager, he writes, and then stops.

Mikasa  _Ackerman_.

He takes a deep breath.

"Standing at 5'6, the first thing you might notice about her is a worn, red scarf around her neck…"

He toils through the familiar steps.

 

 

 


	2. the girl all the boys want to dance with

When he wakes up in the morning, nothing happens.

There's no sword-toting teenage girl in sight, and Levi's not sure why he isn't immediately comforted by this fact. He first thinks of Hange, and grabs his phone from the bedside, groggily sending a text through sleep-hazed eyes. " _Experiment was a fluke, nothing happened_." he types, before slumping back onto the mattress.

It's a small relief to know that his house isn't about to be potentially destroyed by a flock of hormonal teens, he thinks. Yet there's a nagging fragment of memory that remains from the night before.

" _None of it is real? Nobody?_ _"_

He flops over and a wave of guilt washes over his pleasant mood.

" _I don't even_ have  _friends._ _"_

He did this, he thinks, suddenly feeling like Frankenstein. What on earth had he done? Levi stands up and locks his notebook in the only drawer in his desk that required a key, along with his pencil.

Just for good measure.

Putting those thoughts aside, Levi goes through his daily routine of mentally listing his tasks. Eren needs suitable clothes to wear to his interview in the afternoon. He definitely won't fit into Levi's neatly pressed Armani, and Levi wonders if Hange still has the old suit that they wore to the last book signing event.

Just then, a sleepy teen shuffles past his room, looking vaguely like he had stepped out of a  _Little House on the Prairie_  shooting.

… Regardless of how quaint the shop was, they probably wouldn't dig the rustic  _I-call-my-parents-ma-and-pa_  look.

"Eren."

The green eyed boy shuffles back, obviously very comfortable in the fluffy bedroom slippers Levi left in the guest room His mouth is full of foam and a blue toothbrush juts out from his bottom lip.

Wait.

"Brat" he starts, "I'm glad I created you with personal hygiene, but for the love of everything the Powerpuff girls are made of, is that  _my_  toothbrush?" Eren simply looks at him with distant and disconnected eyes, and Levi can practically see a buffering sign over his head.

If this was the character meant to save mankind, the people of his novel were royally  _screwed._

Levi sighs, breaking the long silence as Eren stares ahead with glazed eyes.

"You need modern clothes. I'm shit at shopping and you're too busy being a moping potato to be of any help, so I'm calling Hange."

"Hange?" Eren snaps awake, eyes focusing suddenly. "You aren't coming with?" nervousness edges into Eren's voice and Levi snorts. Going out into a strange world with a stranger person was going to be an adventure, to say the least.

"No. Like I said, I'm shit at shopping." Levi repeats. "And I've got a novel to work on. Deadlines to meet, rough drafts to send in. Book sales slow to a stop eventually, and when the royalties from my first book run out I've gotta support myself somehow."

The look on Eren's face evokes memories of teaching Isabel long division, the familiar expression of pursed lips and wide eyes blinking once, twice, before Eren nods in a semblance of understanding.

"Oh, makes sense."

"You have no idea what I just said."

"Yeah, you got me." Something that faintly seems like a smile crosses Eren's face. The boy is still fiddling anxiously at the hemming of his cotton shirt, and Levi waves him away to finish brushing his teeth as he fetches his phone to dial for more-likely-drunk-than-not editor.

"Hange won't hurt you." Levi calls down the hall as the phone begins dialing. "Much," he whispers. "Just have fun, yeah? Ask about anything you want to know about our world, but make  _sure_  you really want to know, because I can't tell you how many times I've been mentally scarred—"

" _Levi_! And to what do I owe this pleasure?"

Their voice is so chipper Levi pulls the phone away from his ear an arm's length away before cautiously bringing it nearer again.

"Hange. Inside voice, we talked about this. You're talking into a receiver, not ordering McDonalds through a drive-through."

He hears a soft "What the hell is a MacDonalds?" from the bathroom and sighs. He gave it two hours before Eren's cluelessness gets him kicked out of his new job. It's a humble establishment, but Levi's sure they have  _standards_  of some sort.

"Oh, I'm sorry Levi, I drank a Red Bull earlier." Hange booms from the phone. "Guess it really gave me wings…of freedom! Haha, get it? Wings of freedom?"

Levi thinks he's going to throw out his back from all this sighing.

"Right, right, sorry. Did you want something? Is Eren still there?"

"Yes, Eren's still here, and he and the rest of the state can hear you because you're so loud. Anyway, I need a favour. I need you to come get Eren and take him  _shopping_."

There's some sort of unearthly noise that comes from the phone, so loud it makes  _Eren_ cringe. Levi has flashbacks of accompanying Isabel (and a secretly enthusiastic Farlan) to some boy band's concert years ago. The shrieks the crowd emitted was at a decibel that could shame a banshee. His world was still shaking when Hange's emotional voice blares through the phone, " _ **Levi**_ _ **!**_ "

"I already regret this."

"Oh, my little Levi, asking  _me_  to take his little creation  _shopping?_ Not buying more note paper, or some reference book on the history of medieval torture or even anything related to writing but  _shopping!_ Oh Levi, Eren's having a fantastic influence on you already!"

"You know what? Nevermind, I'll—"

"Too late, no backsies. Give me fifteen minutes and I'll be there."  _Click_.

Levi glances over, to see a fearful Eren peering from behind the doorjamb of the bathroom. He sends him a helpless shrug. Mere mortals were powerless in the presence of natural disasters like Hange anyway. (He supposed that's why hurricanes were named after humans).

"Guess the neighbourhood convenience store had a change of employees. Rookies don't know the danger of giving Hange energy drinks yet. Oh well, your problem."

x

Eren discovers that Hange isn't really all that bad, despite the initial meeting.

Exactly fourteen and a half minutes later, there are loud bangs from the front door, before Hange remembers that they own keys to Levi's apartment. The keys jingle and the lock clicks before the door flies open and Hange bounces in jovially. They greet Eren by invading his personal space, and then ignore Levi's complaints to close the door when they come in  _goddamnit,_  opting to enter the kitchen to deposit more energy drinks in the fridge.

Eren has exactly one minute to pull on Levi's too small shoes before Hange pulls him out into the unknown.

\- And the unknown? It's  _amazing_. Spending time with an overexcited ball of energy meant that questions were explained and over-explained before he could even ask them. Some terminology flies over his head, but Eren can't find it in himself to mind. Hange's exuberance was infectious, and even if they initially seemed to always be two steps ahead of him, he soon realizes that he was chasing up and they were walking side by side by late afternoon. He ends up taking Levi's advice and tuning them out sometimes, too busy with the  _lights_ and  _people_ to be able to fully pay attention anyway.

The surroundings pass in a blur as Eren whisks through the city, hearing foreign noises like cars honking at them (and Hange screaming expletives back cheerfully) and taking in the amazing sights like a library that spanned three blocks (He thought of Armin but the sadness passed quickly). The effervescence of experiencing the city soon expells the brooding thoughts that enter his mind when he sits alone in the quiet of Levi's apartment.

Right now, there's no question that he's well and truly alive. Immersed fully in the streets, he should be part of this world now, one of the many people laughing and living in the city. But somehow, it feels like a farce.

He isn't real, or maybe he is, but he wasn't? Either way, he still feels no gravity, like he's a phantom that was simply biding his time in this world. It almost seemed too  _good_ to be true, a reality where no concrete walls would constrain you, would remind you that you lived in constant fear.

But what about home? His friends, his family, the  _monsters?_ Was it a blessing to have suffered so long to finally be told that the pain was fictional? All this time, the raw pain he felt at being orphaned so young was invalidated because he was a figment of an imagination. Even Mikasa, twice-orphaned, still "existed" in a realm of suffering while he was here in a supposedly "real" world.

He knows he's lucky though, despite this existential crisis that would soon pass. He  _especially_ knows as he eats the street fare known as a "hotdog", a simple treat that Sasha would have rightly treated as a luxury back home.

People his age were smiling, laughing, living. Born free as  _they should be_. It was too good to be true.

And he was too young then, but he knew now, what Hannes meant as he cried into his fifth bottle of cheap liquor.

Survivor's guilt.

He hasn't cried yet. He's happy, has no right, absolutely no fucking right to cry on the smooth pavements, beside the undestroyed buildings, in the midst of the happiness he was surrounded with.

He stops in front of the building just to breathe anyway.

"You okay, bud?" Hange finally stops talking to notice him stare in awe, grinning themselves. "Aren't cities amazing? And I'm speaking as a person born right in the heartlands!"

He blinks and breathes. "Yeah, I… Yeah."

"Wait till night, when the lights come on, it'll be amazing!" they touch his arm, asking with an unusually gentle tone, "Shall we?" with a gesture to the store and he nods firmly, finally moving again toward the building.

The inside is noticeably more muted than the hustle and bustle of the streets. There's soft music playing from what seems like the ceiling, and Hange is babbling again but he's too distracted to pay attention until he's hit in the face by a shirt.

"Here's the men's department! Hey, go try that on. And this, and try this too." Eren ends up with a pile of t-shirts and tanktops and pants a mile high, staggering under its weight, as Hange opens the clasp on their wallet and pulls out a card that shimmers gold under the fluorescent lamps. "Go wild, buddy, Levi's taking care of the tab".

x

Eren's backed into a small room with a mirror at Hange's insistence, feeling panic begin to swirl before Hange helpfully calls from behind the thin plywood door

"Just lock the door and try on the clothes! I'll be waiting right out here."

There're shirts of all sizes here, and Eren isn't even sure Hange  _looked_ at what they picked up before tossing it at him. He opens the door after every outfit, letting them give their opinion— _Oh, oh no, harem pants don't…No.,_ _Whoa okay_ _Pete Wentz called and he wants his extra skinny jeans back_ , and  _I'm sorry, I didn't realize I threw leopard print in there please forgive me._

He finally manages to create a style they like after what seems like  _hours_ of trying on clothes, a t-shirt with a plaid jacket thrown over it and some jeans. They raise an eyebrow.

"You actually pull of that look really well… Hey, come here." they motion him over and toss a knitted hat toward him, making gestures for him to put it on. Once he figures out how it's supposed to go, he earns a big grin from Hange.

"You really  _do_ do the hipster look well! I bet if we just got you a scarf you could..."

Eren can't suppress the lurch he feels at the mention of a scarf, and it must have shown, because Hange sputters in an attempt to retract what they just said, but the awkward silence is already settling over them.

Hange chokes at their own insensitivity. How could they have forgotten the blandly written female character that played the role of the main one's adopted sister from Levi's rough drafts? Eren looks the part of a disheveled teen as he toys with his shirt hem, refusing to make eye contact.

"Oh, Eren." they get up from their seat just outside the dressing room, moving toward him to envelope him in a hug. He stiffens at the touch. "I'm sorry, I didn't even think…. Of course you'd miss her, you still have your memories from the book, don't you?"

He hesitates before he answers. "Kind of. They're hazy, but they're coming back. It's not a big deal though; it was a crappy place so…"

"Eren, look at me." a beat, but he finally raises his gaze up. There's a determined look in Hange's eyes, one that could possibly rival his own. "We can fix this."

He flinches as Hange releases him, only to tug him to the cashier. "We'll just get Levi to create your friends too! His house is more than big enough, and besides they're all used to living together… It'll be fine!"

Eren shakes his head. "I don't know, I think he likes being alone. I don't even know if he can-"

"But that's exactly why he needs more people around!" they pile the clothes on the check out, passing the card over to the cashier. "He thinks he has 'aloof' charm or whatever, but honestly, he's just awkward. Last time he was invited for an interview, he stared at the interviewer so hard they forgot everything they were going to say to him because he  _scared_ them. He's a goddamn  _disaster_. But if he had to deal with a bunch of people around all the time, it'd be so great for him!"

Hange slips the card back into the wallet once they things are paid for and plants their hands on their hips. "Come on, we need to get back as soon as we can! We'll settle with this first, we can always come back if we need more… Hurry, Eren!"

He's being dragged around once more before he can even process what's happening, to the car and then they're going so fast that Eren's clinging onto the seatbelt for dear life. Hange busts through Levi's door, tossing the three bags of clothes onto the couch without so much as a second glance.

"Levi, we need to talk to you!"

Hange's voice booms so loud that the neighbours probably hear it. Eren's eyes widen when Levi comes around the corner, hair tousled and squinting like he had just woken up. He looks so disoriented, it's slightly-

Eren swallows thickly and averts his gaze to the floor, fingers running along the hem of his shirt again. What a trainwreck  _that_ line of thought was leading him to.

"I thought you were  _writing_." Hange says, crossing their arms. Levi sighs, and Eren thanks his lucky stars that neither of him noticed his weird behaviour.

"I was doing research."

"By  _sleeping_?"

"I have a very active imagination; things come to life when I'm dreaming. Weren't you supposed to be  _shopping_?" his voice is accusatory, still thick with sleep. Hange motions to the bags behind them and retorts, "We did shop. Stop acting like the grumpy old man you are and come look at what we bought.  _Alsoyoushouldbringtherestofthecharacterstolife_."

It takes Levi a second to process what they said, and when it finally goes through he sighs and drops his hands to his side.

"I don't want to see them; and you know damn well I can't, Hange, I told you that ."

Hange frowns and shoots forward, dragging Levi a few feet back, out of earshot.

"Look, I know you tried last night, but we're going to  _keep_  trying until it works"

Levi gives a defeated shrug. "Hange, I have no fucking idea how I even did it the first time. Can you two just put the clothes away and let me go back to my sleep?"

Hange hesitates for a moment, finally turning toward Eren. His face was impassive, but those green eyes dulled a little as he simply looked down again. They frown, with one last glance toward Levi.

"You're not getting out of this, Levi."

"Yeah, yeah."

"No, Levi, don't give me that, you  _know_ what's it like, don't you, what's Eren's going through?"

Levi stiffen and squares his shoulders at Hange's accusatory affront. "I'll try, alright? I solemnly swear to Hange, the nonbinary deity, that I shall continue with my efforts to bring forth fictional characters.  _But you don't ever,_ _ **ever**_ _bring that up again._ "

"I was kind of hoping to hear it without the sarcasm, but you called me a God so yeah that's good." Hange grins and ignores the veiled threat. They'll consider this a victory, although it was a risky move to poke at unhealed wounds. Desperate times. Turning toward the couch, they pick up two bags and toss the last one toward Eren. "Let's go organize your closet."

"Oh- Yeah, okay."

After they both trot off, Levi leans against a wall a pinches the bridge of his nose. Only with Hange would he put up with that much shit. Opening his eyes back up, he catches sight of something on the couch and frowns.

"Hey, you two forgot a scarf! Don't leave shit lying around my house."

There's a pause where nobody says anything and Levi scowls, about to open his mouth to repeat the statement. But before he can get any words out Hange pops out from the doorway of the room, eyes wide.

"Levi, we didn't buy a scarf."

His eyebrows pull together in confusion. "Well it's fucking  _June_ so it sure as hell isn't-"

Levi's sentence is cut off by Eren sprinting out of the room, barely missing slamming into the corner as he races toward the couch. He snatches the red scarf up, holding the material to his face, examining the stitches closely

Hange isn't too far behind, standing next to Levi to gape. "You made her scarf but not  _her_?"

"Yes, abso- _fucking_ -lutely Hange. I just knit in my free time.  _What the fuck are you talking about_?"

Hange turns their attention back to the couch where Eren stands. "Eren, is it-"

"It's Mikasa's."

There's no doubt in his voice as he says it, clenching it tightly in his hands. It's ragged and worn down, exactly how it was in his mind. "So is she-?"

Then there's a single creak, from the upstairs.

Absolutely none of them move a muscle. They strain their ears in the silence, until Levi finally grumbles, "That better fucking be her, because this house is new and it shouldn't be creaking already. HEY WOMAN, DON'T TOUCH ANYTHING, YOU HEAR? "

Eren takes off, hollering as he goes. "Mikasa? Is that you? Answer me if you hear me!" He hits the first steps so hard that Levi's afraid he's going to crush through them with nothing but pure will. It's almost amazing to see it, the pure excitement and passion in his eyes- that fire that he took  _so_ much time describing finally showing up. Like a movie based off of one of his novels, with absolute perfect casting.

But he misses a step and Levi swears he doesn't remember writing  _100% dork_  into his description as he starts to fall forward, obviously about to smack his face directly into the stairs. It's like a trainwreck, Hange gasps next to him but neither of them can peel their eyes away- especially when Levi knows he'll probably be cleaning up whatever blood spurts out of his soon-to-be-broken nose from this later.

The impact doesn't come. Eren slams his shoulder into the hardwood ground, but his head lands on something vaguely soft. He makes the mistake of looking up to realise that it was a pale arm, and he stills for a second.

"Oh God! Where's her body?" Eren screeches "Levi, she didn't make it here in one piece! Levi!"

From down the stairs, Levi flicks the attic light on to reveal a prone form that was very much intact, but previously concealed in the dark, and he rolls his eyes at Eren's cry of relief. "Is she all there?" He calls, and Eren replies slowly "Yes… but uh, do you think you could bring some clothes over?"

x

When she's clothed and laid down on the sofa, the trio simply circle the unconscious girl in silence. That is, until Hange breaks the silence by squealing.

"There, there she is! Mikasa  _Yeager-_ "

"Ackerman." Levi corrects before he can stop himself, and a sudden rush of pride wells up at the sight of Eren carefully brushing Mikasa's hair from her face. He gives Hange a shrug at their pointed stare, a clear signal for  _'I'll explain later._ '

"Now shush, I think she's waking up."

She is. Her head lolls to the side and she blinks slowly, trying to recognize the mysterious warmth enveloping her. She's happy to find her red scarf wrapped around her neck, and surprised to find her brother's arms wrapped around her in a hug.

The touching scene is cut short when Hange begins gleefully jumping up and down in unbridled excitement, and Mikasa sits up abruptly to pull Eren closer protectively.

"Oh, this is amazing, Levi, look at them! Hello, Mikasa, I'm sure you're a little confused right now, but we'll explain everything in just a tic, alright? Eren, be a dear and get your sister a glass of water."

Eren leaves Hange to perform the ritual of freaking out the new creation, while Levi sits by looking contemplative. He doesn't notice Mikasa's white pants that mysteriously appeared on the spotless tile until too late, and then they slip out from under his feet as the ground rushes up to meet his head and he hears no more.

x

When Eren comes to, he's staring at the ceiling.

His brain is jumpstarted by the panic, and his heart jolts with the first thought of-  _the titans where is_ _…_ _outside_ _the walls? Where's Mikasa and Armin and_ -

And then suddenly everything comes back. the fact that he's a fictional character, the shopping, Mikasa being back. He feels the fist that he wasn't aware he was clutching loosen.

There's no direct danger, he's with his sister, and he's  _safe._

There are voices that are still too muffled for him to make out as he makes his way to consciousness, and as he stirs they all suddenly stop.

"-Ren? Eren?"

He recognizes that voice vaguely, it's smooth and low, comforting, and most of all familiar. He blinks a few times as he realizes who it belongs to.

"Mikasa?"

He doesn't try to sit up, because the world is still spinning. All he can focus on without the nausea and the pounding headache setting in is Mikasa adjusting the pillow beneath him, that familiar concerned frown on her face. He could just  _hug_ her again.

"Glad to have you back, Eren." that voice belonged to Hange, sitting in a chair across from where he was laying… The couch, maybe? "But Mikasa's right, you need to lie back down. Levi's in the back washing up all the clothes that have been appearing out of nowhere. Way too much going on right now."

Things are slowing down, his heart slows in his chest until he can't hear it's frenzied pounding anymore. Mikasa's still staring down at him and he tries to ask her a question, but his throat is dry, so he remains quiet instead.

"They told me everything." her face betrays nothing, emotions fully under control as she slowly lifts him up with no apparent strain, bringing a glass of water to his lips. Her mask slips for a moment and he tries to read her- doubt? Hope? Relief? It's gone as soon as it came. "I guess it's true."

Eren focuses on the ceiling beyond her face, nodding silently.

"Do you know how you got here?"

"I don't remember anything." she admits. He nods.

"Yeah, me neither."

The sofa is so soft beneath him, the clothes he's wearing nothing like the coarse fabric of his uniform, that a sudden thought occurs to him. He slowly sits up, Mikasa's hand hovering on his back, and he swallows before asking "Do we get to go shopping again?"

There's a beat where no one says anything, before Hange lets out a loud laugh. "And here I thought you didn't like it! You looked exhausted the entire time!"

He glances down sheepishly, shrugging. "Well, the clothes part wasn't so bad, but seeing outside was…"

" _Ohh_. Of course, we'll go back outside. What, did Levi say he was going to lock you up in the house forever or something?"

Levi snorts, and the sound almost makes Eren jump. He had been so focused on Hange and Mikasa that he didn't even notice the other man's presence. When  _had_ he come back into the room?

"Actually, I told him to get a job. That's what you were supposed to go get clothes for, and instead you bought him an entire goddamn wardrobe."

Hange shrugs. "He needed it. And yeah, we will have to go get her clothes, but I guess we'll have to wait until tomorrow since it's night now… Oh, that's right!" suddenly clapping their hands together, they turn their full attention onto Levi. "Earlier I told Eren we could go see the city at night. If he's feeling up to it, we could all pile into my car and hang out at the park…"

Levi frowns but Eren pipes up before he can object. "And we can show Mikasa what it's like out there! It's so different, Mikasa, it's  _incredible_."

All eyes turn onto the girl. She fidgets with her scarf, but her face remains impassive. "... Whatever Eren wants to do."

In an instant, both Eren and Hange are on their feet and pulling Mikasa and Levi to theirs. Levi looks mildly annoyed, but gets shotgun before anyone else can climb in as Eren and Mikasa pile into the backseat, kicking aside the empty cans of red bull while Levi gripes about the sorry state of the car.

The instant they exit the parking lot, Eren is talking about the things Hange had showed him earlier, repeating what he could remember. They were almost impressed with how much he had remembered. And Hange was just sure Eren was zoning them out most of the time! Driving through the city, they stop off at a deserted park, peaceful with all people gone so late at night. Eren struggles with the door handles as Levi comes around to open it up, feeling more and more every passing second like he had just adopted two  _children_.

And truly, the look on Eren's face was nothing but childish wonder. It was so… Odd, to see character quirks he had added to him manifest in a world he was never meant for.

Well, technically this was "outside the walls" too, Levi guessed.

As Hange gave them the all-clear to snoop around and mess with as much stuff as they wanted here, Levi sat down on a bench and thought. Was this some sort of super power? He could just create people out of thin air? What if -

"So, ready to explain to me why you changed Mikasa's last name to  _yours_?"

He rubs his temple as Hange takes a seat next to him, half their face obscured by the backlit fluorescent park lights. He fishes a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket, lighting one up and taking a drag.

"Can't I have just  _one_ thought to myself without you interrupting?"

He says nothing more, but Hange waits, eyes glinting in the weak light.

"My sister."

The answer is blunt, and he doesn't look at them when saying it. Hange looks down and remains silent.

"I figured as much." They look up, inhaling deeply "I'm… Sorry, Levi. What I did just now, it wasn't fair on you. I know what it's like as well." The murmur as they link their pinkie finger with Levi's in a gesture of solidarity is low. "I'm not too sure this is an entirely healthy way to deal with it," they look at Eren and Mikasa, the former pointing up at a street lamp. "but I'm not going to tell you how to grieve. She's not her. Just remember that. You cut me off after two months of drinking myself blind, so expect nothing less from me."

Levi exhales, nodding slowly, but says nothing. The smoke floats up around them and hangs in the summer air, where other than the droning cicadas and Eren's excited voice, all is silent.

"Also, you should really quit that habit. It's disgusting."

"Shh, go bug the kids"

They grin, patting him on the back. "You're right, I'll leave you to your brooding, because when living with those two sets in," they point a thumb at the pair behind them transfixed at working the water fountain, "You won't have much time for that anymore"

They giggle as Levi slumps back into the bench, watching Hange traipse toward the other two and start pointing at something in the distance.

He fumbles in his pocket and pulls out a small key, the one to his drawer. This could be interesting.

Mikasa walks over solemnly and tugs on his sleeve.

"Father?"

" _Hange I told you to cut that shit out!_ "

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> two updates in one week! i wouldn't hold my breath on this being a continuing trend, though I'd LIKE to be able to keep it that way. i'm having so much fun with this fic haha
> 
> before anyone asks about it (i'm sure it will come up in someone's mind), the novel he's writing is pretty clearly SNK, BUT with differences. (like the fact that eren and co are 18.) there are other differences, but they'll be revealed through the story and i don't wanna spoil anything! but if it seems like im leaving something out, there's a good chance it's deliberate.
> 
> anyway, thank you all so much for the positive feedback and interest i've gotten on the first chapter! i hope i can still hold everyone's attention!


	3. more than you bargained for

Levi pushes his hand roughly through his hair, the caffeine in his bloodstream only serving to agitate him more. The paper on his table remained frustratingly blank, save for the scattered indentations left by the incessant tapping of his pen.

God damn, he hated this.

Deciding to sit down and begin on Armin's character sheet had taken two hours of psyching himself up as it were. Levi had spent the better half of the afternoon agonizing over his dilemma and how it would affect the two other… Beings currently residing in Casa de Ackerman. Would it mess with their personalities? Memories?

He'd finally sat down and pulled his note paper out after a long deliberation, deciding that the consequences couldn't have been that bad, since Eren had remained more or less unchanged after Mikasa's arrival.

Even then, he still danced around the task of actually  _creating_ Armin, opting to rewrite the earlier scenes and fixing them first to warm up. As much as he hated to admit it, maybe Hange was right- having the two around put a lot of things into perspective. It was less  _fiction_ and more  _biography_ , maybe, but it worked. He'd spent the week observing the two as they went about their daily tasks, willingly initiating more conversations than he ever did in his life just to get a sense of their character and individual personalities. He was pleased to find that his new notes were much more comprehensive than the initial ones, with Mikasa and Eren's personalities being much more robust than they originally were.

To think that he almost brushed off Hange's critiques.

But, as it always did, the initial rush, the pleasure from his hand moving across the page and creating life slowed to a complete halt, his brain stubbornly protesting from scrambling to think of new things to add in, ways he could fix old scenes, ways to expand the novel into something more solid. He did better this time; three hours before the crashing waves of inspiration receded, leaving him with a dry shore of insipid drivel and overwhelming frustration.

Writer's block bites again.

Slamming the pen down, he leans back in his chair and lets out an irritated sigh, suddenly sensing another pair of eyes on him. He doesn't even need to look to know who it was.

"Eren."

He tips his head back over the chair to acknowledge the green-eyed kid was staring at him. For only  _god_ knows what this time.

He almost missed the zombie-eyed, quiet teen he was before being reunited with his sister. The curious and annoying boy that now routinely broke household appliances in his curiosity was beginning to prove a nuisance. He gave Levi a wide berth, as Levi had decreed when Eren was first created.  _Thou shalt not disturb me when I'm writing, brat,_ he remembered clearly, and so had Eren, apparently.

It just so happened that while Eren was gifted with an abundance childish curiosity, his temperance was more explosive than Hange's choice drinks on a Friday night. This was, of course, technically Levi's own fault, but he hadn't exactly created Eren for an existence where toasters were invented. The morning had ended with Levi explaining (loudly) for the thousandth time that appliances had to plugged in before they could properly function, causing a prickly Eren to storm out to the front porch, which of course Mikasa followed him out.

Eren could be given a B- for trying, at the very least. Mikasa, on the other hand, tended to regard modern technology as a nuisance, using it only if it was absolutely necessary. Hange wrote it off as an unwillingness to embrace this realm since she probably thought they were returning soon. Levi was sure she was just doing it to annoy him. He was lucky she hadn't tried to start a fire outside as an alternative to the toaster.

"Writing again?" Eren leans against the doorway as he watches Levi, arms crossed. Levi spins his office chair around and sends him a flat look.

"No, I was fucking finger painting a picture to hang on the refrigerator. Of course I was writing. What do you want?"

The comment doesn't pass without a spike of guilt, which quickly passes at the sight of Eren shrugging and walking into his room despite his curt dismissal. The unfinished novel still presents an  _unprecedented_ frustration and Eren's presence was beginning to prove more of an impediment than an aid.

"Nothing, I'm just… Bored."

 _Bored_. He comes from a primitive time period without electricity, to a modern one filled with television and internet and a  _million fucking things to do_  and he's  _bored_.

"Where's Mikasa?"

"At work."

Eren's bitterness that Mikasa had gotten the job that he had applied for earlier is plainly painted on his face. It bugs Levi too. He'd much rather have Mikasa around the house than Eren. At least she left him be.

Levi sighs and turns back toward his paper. "Go turn on the TV then. Remember, it's the red button on the remote-that's the black thing-"

"Sounds like the thing I broke ten minutes ago. Hey, can I read what you're writing?"

Eren is dangerously close to being able to read over Levi's shoulder. Once Levi deems it a transgression of his personal space, he abruptly stands up and stares Eren down, a move he later admits would have been more effective if he could actually stare  _down_ on the boy who was a good head taller than him. Eren simply smirks and tiptoes just so he can peek over Levi.

That takes balls, and Levi's about 5 seconds away from cutting Eren's off.

"Back off."

"Make me" Eren's obviously itching for a fight, or any source of entertainment to remedy the boredom. He scoots closer still, and Levi scowls up at him.

"I'll bring Jean here next. Don't test me"

It works. Eren flops down into a chair adjacent to his own. He tries to sneak another look at the notebook, just as Levi flips it shut.

This kind of shit is  _exactly_ why he never likes writing in public.

"You're writing about me, right? Don't I get a say in how I'm portrayed?"

 _For that, you're going to be portrayed as titan food within the fifth chapter_ , Levi thinks sourly.

"As long as you're a  _temporary_ guest here, you don't really get a say in anything. Anyway, nobody reads the manuscript before Hange; We have an arrangement."

He fumbles for a moment as Eren sulks, obviously bored again, which spells property destruction of some kind within the next half hour. A thought suddenly occurs to him. He was living every author's wet dream, with his protagonist sitting in the very same room as him. He could ask him any question; have any scenario already given to him. The book was practically pre-written.

"Hey, Eren."

His gaze flicks back to Levi. "Huh?"

"What would you do if Armin was about to be swallowed whole by a titan?"

Eren's eyes flicker and darken with a cloud of hatred. Good, he recognizes the name even if Levi hadn't developed the character in detail yet, that's a start. "Rescue him."

An expected answer, but it's still not enough to work with.

"Alright, you've rescued him, now  _you're_ about to be eaten. What now?"

Eren's chest constricts, and it's becoming difficult to breathe in the room. His eyes get a distant, angry look in them. Levi silently drags his notebook closer to himself and while avoiding Eren's attention, slowly rolls the office chair away from the teen with a murderous glint in his eyes.

"I'd… I'd kill it. I'd  _kill_ it."

"Mmhm, How?" He ventures, scribbling down 'uselessly hardheaded' under a column with 'Eren Yeager' on the header. Eren is clenching the arms of his beautiful Danish-made chair so hard he's denting the hardwood. Levi grimaces.

"Better think fast, Eren, it's about to kill you-"

"I'd… I'd…"

"-and you're dead." Levi declares, slotting his notebook back into the safety of his drawers. Schooling his face into an unamused expression, he spins in his chair and dismisses in what he hopes is a voice that isn't  _too_  shaky "Nevermind, I'll figure something out on my own."

But suddenly he's facing Eren's eyes, as the latter twists the chair around and cages him in. "No, I'll kill it. I'll kill it- Even from the inside I'll  _fucking_ kill it-"

Levi struggles to hold Eren's gaze, unwilling to back down. He'd be lying if he wasn't about piss himself right there, but his pride held him steady.  _You created him; you're the one in power here._ Still, his trembling hands belied his bewilderment at the pure, unbridled passion and hatred in just one soul. Levi quickly realizes that if he doesn't want one  _berserk_ teenager in his house he'd better do something to distract him, fast. Something- Another question, maybe-

"What would you do if Mikasa tried to kiss you?"

It's the first thing Levi can think of that will throw him off, far enough from the current topic at hand but not too much of a shift either. And it works. Eren's jaw slacks as he blinks in confusion, the fire from his eyes replaced with complete befuddlement. He releases his death grip on Levi's chair, straightening and crossing his arms.

"What?"

"I think you heard me, Yeager." He replies, trying to even his breathing past the roar of blood pounding in his head.  _Do not mention titans around him._ He makes a mental note. When he thinks the adrenaline has ebbed away enough, he repeats with an amused lift on his lips, "What would you do if Mikasa tried to kiss you?"

It's such a juvenile question, like something that a preteen would ask at a slumber party. But it was the first thing that popped into his head and, besides, maybe he had slightly thought about adding in a romantic subplot. The story would be fine without it, in his opinion, but if it was subtle enough and drew in more readers… It might be an okay addition. People ate that shit up.

"I… Nothing?"

Levi raises an eyebrow and retrieves his notebook and pen.

 _Passive lover with very liberal morals,_ he scribbled

"No, wait, I meant- I…"

Eren fumbles and stumbles over his own tongue, looking so absolutely lost that Levi almost felt bad for asking the question at all.

"I've never even thought about- Why would she even do that? I mean, we're like, we're family?" his eyebrows are drawn in so far he looks genuinely upset. Levi sighs.

 _Never even thought about it; Until now._ Levi suppresses a smile as he nonchalantly says "I guess I'll go ahead and add romantically oblivious to your character page-"

"Hey, I'm not romantically oblivious!"

Now the boy huffed indignantly, scowling and puffing up his ruddy cheeks. Levi was glad for the boy's temperamental nature. He'd successfully veered away from Eren's previous thundering rage in less than fifteen minutes.

"I've just never thought about that before."

"You're eighteen."

"She's  _family_."

Levi clicks his tongue. "Alright, then. Sasha?" Eren hums bemusedly and Levi puts it down as a plausible . "Christa?" Eren continues humming, looking quite amenable to the prospect. "Ymir?" The humming turns frantic as his hands shoot up in the universal symbol of  _Please Don't Hurt Me_ and he shakes his head furiously.

Levi pens down  _Shows signs of instinctive common sense._

"Well, that one's probably good because she's ga-"

He cuts himself off.

"Jean."

He's scrutinizing Eren's face, as it shifts from a shocked expression to a vaguely offended one.

"I-What,  _no_!"

"Why?"

"He has the worst personality in the world. He's a  _dick_."

"What about his appearance, though?"

Eren blinks at him for a few seconds.

"He has a horse face."

"Long faces are considered attractive."

"Yeah, in this world, maybe."

He flicks his hand and shoos the boy away, turning to read through his notes again. This entire thing was doing wonders for his writing (Just like Hange said, he admits reluctantly) and it was proving to be a great source of amusement for him and Eren both. Anything that prevents the boy from threatening to throw any more kitchen appliances out the window was alright in his books.

He feels something tickling his nape and spins round to see Eren hovering behind him

"I'm not romantically oblivious – Cancel – Ow! Don't pinch me!—Cancel that!."

" _Okay_ , Eren."

Eren simply  _tsks_ and walks away.

x

Eren's sitting on the couch when Levi finally slinks out of the room for a snack and hour later, stretching as he walked. He finds the boy huddled up in a blanket and so immersed in the TV that he jumps when Levi approaches.

"Glad you found something to do and got out of my hair."

"Shh." he replies, scowl on his face. "This is interesting."

Levi frowns at the television. "Is that Adam Sandler?"

Eren glares at the glowing box, refusing to turn to face Levi. "No, his name is Henry! Now Shh!"

"No that's definitely… You're watching  _50 First Dates_ , aren't you."

Eren remains silent, transfixed as a blonde actress enters the scene, confirming Levi's thoughts.

"I'unno. Found it under  _Romance_." Eren confesses as a commercial comes on. "Because, you know, I'm not romantically oblivious."

Levi almost spits. "You're  _still_ hung up on—You know, never mind." He says as he saunters to the kitchen.

"Get popcorn! We're finally going to see if he's really going to leave her!"

x

Mikasa returns to see Eren sprawled out on the couch while Levi stares incredulously, his eyes flicking back and forth from Eren to the screen.

"Are you  _really_ into this?"

Eren doesn't break his gaze away from the screen, shovelling buttery popcorn into his mouth.

"Yes, because people who  _aren't_  romantically oblivious are 'into this'. People like  _me_."

"Why does it bother you so much that I said that?"

Eren's too caught up in the movie to give him a response.

x

Once it hits 2AM, and he's sure the kids were in bed, Levi pulls out the character sheets and starts to work again.

He felt like a filthy, guilty junkie, turning to creating more characters as he desperately staved off the next wave of his writer's block. He was convinced this was a good idea though. Interviewing Armin was bound to go much better than the afternoon's disaster with Eren.

All things considered, he didn't have much to lose, and by two thirty in the morning, Levi's easily completed a page describing Armin's appearance. Armin always had been more vivid to him for some reason, smaller and with less muscle than his two companions, but with the critical thinking skills to make up for it.

Levi remembers how Hange retells their past, as a child that was incredibly precocious from a young age, choosing to isolate themselves to read rather than play with the other students. Bright-eyed and bullied. Sharp minded and shoved around.

Resourceful and revengeful.

Levi sighs wistfully as Armin comes to life effortlessly beneath his pen. He'd never tell, but Armin encapsulates all that Levi admires in Hange ever since he met them in his early twenties. The character sheet practically completes itself by three am.

If only he could write the novel at this speed.

He holds it up and examines it. Now it was just a matter of time- hopefully, though, this one wouldn't arrive naked. Locking it up in the drawer, he stretches and shuffles off to his room.

Levi's just crawling into bed (with minty breath and a clean face, per his nightly routine) when there's a high-pitched shriek from one of the other bedrooms. He hits the floor and throws open the door to the hallway so hard it slams against the bedroom wall. Nobody's fucking with  _his_ creations. He hesitates before barging into one of the rooms, adrenaline pumping and unsure which it came from- but Eren staggers out from his, wide-eyed and dazed, staring at Mikasa's room.

Taking this as his hint, he slams open her door and flips the light-switch on, gaping at what he sees.

There's a blonde sprawled out on the floor, one leg still resting on the bed. He's face down, but the blond mop of hair gives him away. Mikasa's staring down at him like she's just seen a ghost, a piece of two-by-four- _where'd she even get that_?-still raised over her head. Eren bursts in just a few seconds after Levi, pausing next to him as he takes in the scene himself.

Levi's heart is still slamming so hard he can feel it in his ears as it finally registers what's happened. "Put that down, Mikasa. How many people do you plan on knocking out?"

Blinking, she obediently places the wood in Levi's outstretched hands and crouches next to the unconscious boy, lifting his head up.

"It's… Armin."

Eren swoops down, but Mikasa easily lifts Armin and places him on the bed.

The trio stare and frown down on Armin's prone form for a moment.

"Do you think I gave him a concussion?"

x

Levi moves on autopilot after that, feeling every bit like a father figure as the two  _conscious_  brats wait by the sleeping Armin, who awakened earlier and showed no signs of cognitive damage before falling back asleep.

Levi watches the time carefully. It took a night for Eren to materialise, four to five hours for Mikasa, sans clothing.

He wrote Armin up an  _hour_ ago.

Levi paces up and down his hall, wondering if he should notify Hange of this observation, but decides not to risk a midnight visit from his boisterous editor.

He pauses in his worrying to see a bleary Eren shuffle back into his room with a quiet "G'night", before Mikasa pops her head out and says, quite authoritatively "Go to bed, I can watch Armin by myself."

Her voice doesn't bode any question, and Levi's not in a state to argue as he shrugs and slips into bed, falling asleep almost instantaneously.

Until he's woken by a frantic Eren, who's shaking him by his forearm a mere hour later.

"…I am going to skin you until you look like the Colossal Tita—"

"Okay, okay, after you hear me out, okay? I mean, I'm not  _scared_  or anything but uh, what if, say, Armin loses his memory? Like – Like Lucy! From that show earlier? I mean, what if. What. If. Me and Mikasa have to spend the rest of our  _lives—"_

Levi flops onto his belly and screams into his pillow.

x

"Levi. He… Is… Perfect!"

In the end, Levi gets one continuous hour of sleep before Hange arrives at six in the morning. Not because they got a tip off that Armin was created, but because they just  _decided to drop by._ Levi's drowning his sorrows into his coffee, simply because he has a no-alcohol-before-two-pm policy. But seeing Hange bouncing on their heels and throwing a million questions a minute at Armin, Levi decides that it has to be past two in  _Singapore_  or somewhere across the world where he'd rather be, and breaks out the whiskey.

When the alcohol has sufficiently warmed his frosty outlook on life, he's pleased, and unsurprised by how quickly Hange takes a liking to Armin. It was hard to notice, with Hange being the overenthusiastic person they were, but there was a shine in their eyes that wasn't present when Eren was introduced.

Levi knew that look. People got it when they read a good book.

The look when they realise they aren't alone.

Armin, on the other hand, is beginning to fidget and squirm under the attention, and Levi clicks his tongue.

"Hange, stop. He probably has a concussion from last night."

"Oh, no, I think he's fine." they pause from shooting questions at him, turning to look at Levi. "He's answering all of these very coherently. As a matter of fact, he's taken to this the best out of everyone."

Armin manages a weak smile, which was still better than Eren's look of abject horror the first time he met Hange. Levi wonders if Eren and Mikasa pre-empted him prior to Hange's interrogation.

"I, uh.. Well, my head  _does_ sort of hurt…"

It's an obvious attempt to break away from Hange for at least a moment, a silent plea for help. It doesn't go amiss by Mikasa. She sends Hange a dark look from her spot beside Armin, and when it's gleefully overlooked, she redirects it to Levi. He sighs and shoots a glance toward Eren, who had his head resting in his palm, eyes unfocused. He obviously didn't get any sleep after last night's fiasco, and any functioning neurons in his titan-obsessed head were probably still trying to figure out ways to prove he wasn't romantically oblivious.

Grunting, Levi finally stands up.  _Taking one for the team_ , he thinks bitterly, gulping down his whiskey before grabbing Hange's ponytail and tugging just hard enough to get their attention again.

"Let's go down to the cafe and let these three catch up."

Hange frowns, eyes drifting back toward Armin. "But-"

" _Editor-Author meeting_." he slurs, eyes bloodshot and voice equal parts desperate and homicidal. Hange makes a small whine at the back of their throat and they turn back toward Armin with a sympathetic look.

"Sorry, guess it's an emergency. But I have a lot more questions! You seem to know more than these two, anyway- Ow, Levi!  _Anyway_ , I'll talk to you more late- Okay, okay, I'm  _coming_!"

Levi doesn't look backward as he tugs Hange out the door, shutting it behind them.

"Stop fucking freaking them out after they've only been conscious for an hour. It's weird."

"Well if  _ **I**_  don't start the conversation, no one will! Between you, Mr got-a-stick-but-need-a-dick-up-my-ass, Miss and Mr Murder, and Little Genius Murder Jr. in there, I'm the only  _normal_ one!"

Levi's too tired to choke on the irony.

Hange breaks the silence, "He was fine anyway. What are you, an overprotective  _father_?"

Levi suppresses the urge to dry-heave "Maybe I wouldn't have to drag you away every time if you'd do your job as honorary godparent and stop acting as if you were trying to dissect them or something." Before Hange begins full on sulking, he sighs.

"By the way, I tried talking to Eren about the book last night."

Their eyes light up once again. "And? What happened?"

"He went berserk; I definitely won't be doing it again. I thought maybe he was going to start attacking the furniture or something. He's like… A hamster. Very angry and vicious, but not at all intimidating." Levi lies through his teeth, and is pleased to see that Hange doesn't hold back a laugh at that.

"Your metaphors are terrible. How'd you calm him down?"

"By confusing him." Levi pauses, looking down at the ground. "I think he's starting to pick up characteristics I didn't write into him."

Hange pulls a face. "Really? Well… Maybe that would make sense. People change and adapt to their surroundings." Hange goes quiet, and smiles, "It's all so interesting!" Hange waits a beat, before asking, "... But what makes you think that?"

"Because he's gay, and I wrote  _nothing_ about his sexuality."

Hange stops and stares then, dead serious.

"You can only write what you know, Levi"

"What, do I  _write_ gayly?"

They give him a very serious look. "Do you?"

"Shut up, Hange."

Their lips twitch upward, suddenly mischievous. "So how exactly do you know he's gay? Did you-"

"No."

They burst out laughing, then shift back to serious again.

"Wait, would it be like… Selfcest if you did though? Mindcest?  _Is it technically masturbation_?"

The city's pastor passes by them and shoots the pair a dirty look. He goes ignored by both of them.

"Why yes, Hange, according to Freudian theories, my narcissism has broken the laws of physics in my thirst to bone myself."

Their eyes widen as though Levi's words were an epiphany.

"Oh my god. That's actually plausib—"

"No Hange. No it isn't."

The café comes into view just a block away, and Hange deliberately bumps into Levi lightly.

"C'mooon, you have to admit he's cute at least. You did a good job in that department."

"He's mentally unstable."

"We're all mad here" Hange quips, and when Levi glares, they simply smack him on his back good-naturedly.

"I'm just messing with you! Why so serious?"

He doesn't bother dignifying that with a response, instead opening up the cafe door for them.

"Hurry up, four-eyes. I'll pay for your coffee since I dragged you out here."

They give him a good-natured grin. "So generous as always, Levi."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> aaaaand the golden trio is complete!
> 
> i'm having way too much fun with this fic to be honest. i know im building the romance super slowly, but i promise it is headed in the ereri direction! it'll pick up speed pretty soon.


	4. we're the new face of failure

"Hey Armin, lemme see that."

Eren is flat on his stomach, chin resting on top of his hands as he watches his blonde friend tap away at a device on the other end of the bed. The request makes Armin look up, skeptism flashing on his face before he turns his attention to the device once more.

"According to my calculations and corroborated evidence from Levi, you break 98% of all devices you touch. So that's a no from me."

With an overly dramatic groan, Eren flops onto his back and spreads his arms out. Of  _course_ Levi said that about him. For someone who wanted Eren out of his hair as long as possible, he sure was stingy with the entertainment.

"Fine, I won't touch," Eren says as he scooches over to lie beside Armin, "Just show me what you're doing."

Armin rolls his eyes at Eren's dramatic display, but relents anyway. "Well, I doubt you can break it with your  _eyes_. Here," he moves his hand across the screen, and Eren leans up on his elbows. He watches with fascination as Armin's fingers flitter across the screen, alternating between tapping on several buttons and scrolling at a dizzing speed, all while explaining in that level voice of his each program or file. He'd learnt all this in a week, while Mikasa and Eren still had limited success operating the dishwasher.

"…And this is my personal favourite. It's like a… Place with tons of information. Much more than the old libraries we had back home." Armin says, his voice betraying no homesickness.

He swipes his fingers across the screen again and types in a few words. ' _Pancake recipes_ '. The screen fills up immediately, words upon words upon  _words_ that just looking at made Eren's head hurt.

Yeah, Armin could keep his digital library.

"How're there that many… words on there, anyway? Is it like a big book? How does it  _work_?" Eren makes an attempt to reach for it, but Armin pulls it away, out of his reach.

"Well, it's like, uh…."

Eren stares at him expectantly, crossing his arms.

"... Magic?"

At Armin's lame finish, Eren snorts. Not even Armin knew how it worked-

\- Unless it really was magic. They were already fictional characters, nothing else could surprise him anymore.

"All this amazing cool magic and you decide to do nothing but read?" Eren rolls his eyes, dodging a pillow that Armin chucks at him. "Hey, don't be mad because it's true!"

"At least I have something to do other than stare at the walls all day." Armin retorts, holding his hand up before Eren can say anything back. "And don't argue, the only thing you've taken any effort in trying to learn in this world is the  _TV_."

Eren sits up now, crossing his arms. "At least it has pictures! And they  _move_ , too."

"Get a hobby." Armin retorts, and falls silent, captivated by the glowing screen again.

Eren groans and grabs the pillow, smothering his head with it as he flops backwards onto the mattress again. "You've been hanging around Mikasa too much. Both of you two need to-"

Abruptly, he cuts his sentence off as he hears a noise from nearby. A noise he recognizes well, by now, the high pitched ringing that haunts him. He presses himself further down into the mattress, closing his eyes and murmuring,

" _She's back_."

The boys wait with bated breaths, both stock still on the bed as the the ringing stops and is replaced by a high-pitched  _beep_ , as a voice comes from beyond the bedroom door:

" _Answering machine again!? Leeeevi, stop ignoring me! Seriously, or I'm going to come bust down your door._ _These heels can do some serious damage, don't even try me. Am I supposed to believe that tale Hange fed me about you_ _conveniently_ _losing your cell phone and having your landline disconnected at the same time? You're the_ _ **worst**_ _best man ever!_ _Seriously, the wedding is coming up really soon and Hange says you still don't have a date and Farlan doesn't seem worried but_ _– Farlan why are the roses there yellow? No, no, no don't touch that_ _—_ _Am I doomed to be plagued with useless men for the rest of my life_ _?_ _Call me before I do something we'll both regret,_ _ **brother.**_ _ **Bye**_ _._ "

Another  _beep_ signals the end, and Eren releases a breath and opens his eyes again. "Armin. Is she gone?"

Armin breathes in once, twice, before slowly answering, "…I think so"

"You heard that, didn't you? That girl, the bride, she said she's coming- do you think it's a ghost? Did Levi almost get married and then kill his bride at the last second?"

Armin frowns and tucks the tablet in his arm, uncomfortably staring at the door before tapping on the screen, collecting as much information on exorcising home appliances.

x

By the time Levi walks through the front door, Eren is barely clinging onto consciousness as the credits of yet another movie roll. Levi scowls at him as he unclasps the heavy metal watch from his wrists and lays it gently on the counter.

"Go sleep in your own room if you're that tired. And God help me, if you leave crumbs on my sofa again, I'll skin and tan your hide for my new sofa cover." Levi grumbles as he stomps over to the coffee table, snatching up a few snack wrappers that Eren hadn't thrown away yet. He shifts, looking up at Levi from his place on the couch.

"'M sorry. Was gonna do it later."

"Oh, I'm sure the bugs will understand. After all, bacteria understand the three second law, don't they?" he snaps, checking under the table for any wrappers that might have fallen off. "Between Armin on my tablet all day and you turning into a TV-zombie, my electricity bill is going to be sky-high."

He only gets a yawn in reply.

This god-damned brat.

Levi hesitates, caught between forcing Eren off the couch or just leaving him there. He considers Eren's bulkier, lanky frame and gets the distinct impression that if he tried to roll him off the couch he'd probably just fall back asleep on the floor next to it. Carrying him was totally out of the question.

He continues to glare at him as Eren's breathing evens out, not even noticing the way his own harsh stare softened into curiosity as the other drifted back off. Eren was… Pouting?

He had almost mistaken it for discomfort at first, the way his brows arched slightly and his lips turned downward. But he wasn't shifting to try and make himself more comfortable, and his bottom lip stuck out just a tiny bit. He wasn't uncomfortable, he was pouting.

In his  _sleep_.

If Hange had been there, they probably would have been screaming over how  _cute_ it was. And as much as he tried to reassure himself that thought only popped into his head because it was something Hange would say, he can't bring himself to admit that it's not.

He drops the wrappers onto the coffee table, willing it not to crinkle as he bends slowly and moves at a glacial pace towards the sleeping boy.  _Only for writing purposes, only for writing purposes_ , he repeats in his head. It isn't creepy if it's helping him further analyze his main characters, is it?

Oh, what the hell ever. It wasn't like he had anyone to explain his actions to.  _Damn_ it.

He turns his head away and exhales slowly, trying to rationalize away his clammy palms and erratic heartbeat. Hange had planted something in his brain that he couldn't get out, and against his will that freaky little seed was growing into a long vine that twined around all his thoughts.

"Levi?"

Levi stumbles backwards, quickly turning to gather the scatters wrappers and straightening himself quickly, striding to the kitchen bin.

"What."

Another yawn. "Can we go somewhere tomorrow? It's boring around here."

Levi ponders as he steps on the foot pedal to open the bin's lid. "No laser tag," he replies slowly, still shrouding his face in the dark of the kitchen. When he finally turns to face Eren, the only light in the apartment is the sharp glow of the television casting a white light over Eren's face, illuminating his hair like a halo. Hard to believe this was the puppy like boy that caused rampant destruction if he was confined without a steady source of entertainment for too long. If Hange was around, he'd just send him out with them, but they were gone for the weekend.  _Business_.

But Eren  _has_  been getting a little too curious about the microwave, and it was making Levi nervous. "... Fine. We're leaving in the morning, so you better have your ass in gear. I've got errands to run anyway."

Eren's head flops back down before Levi can tell him to take his ass to his own room. With a sharp exhale, he grabs the throw-blanket laid across the top of the chair and tosses it on him, turning off the TV as he exits the living room.

x

Levi idly wonders if anyone would call the police if he started keeping Eren on a leash in public. He finally decides against it, seeing someone give him an odd look as they walk by. What, did he say that out loud?

Mikasa serves just about the same purpose anyway, always a few steps behind him. Fortunately, her childish wonder had faded soon after appearing, reverting her back to the more level headed one between Eren and Armin. And Armin, while he probably wouldn't try and dive into the fountain with the colored lights that changed the hue of the water, was not always strong or fast enough to make sure  _Eren_ wouldn't.

Maybe he should get her that pocket knife she's been eyeing for the past week.

His eyes flicker past the shops as they walk by, trying to decide where to go next. He half considers going into a shop and buying all three of them cheap pay-phones, except that would mean a bunch of kids born in an era with  _cannons_ as the most advanced technology texting each other, and that's not quite a step Levi's ready to make.

"Levi, I'm hungry."

He knew it was coming.

"What do I look like, your parent? Mikasa's got money; you mooch off of me enough."

Mikasa places a hand protectively over her pocket, her glare communicating just how enthusiastic she was about her brother dipping into her savings.

Hange couldn't come back home fast enough.

Sighing, his eyes wander across the street, landing on the pizza shop just catty-corner.

"... You guys ever had pizza before?"

The blank faces at the question give him his answer, and he almost has to bite down a grin. Not that  _he_  was particularly fond of the overly-greasy, messy food, but the thought of a couple teenagers never having eaten a slice was almost laughable. He points to the shop, waving them over so they can see.

"Then I guess you're in for a treat."

x

Levi immediately regrets his decision when he walks into the restaurant and sees the back of an all-too-familiar redhead, stealing bits of pepperoni from her companion's plate.

Shit.

He ducks behind Eren before Farlan can see him, gritting his teeth. Just his luck, to run into someone he'd been avoiding.

… Not that he had any real excuse for avoiding her. At first it had been  _I don't feel like talking about your wedding right now_ , to _I don't feel like talking to you about me avoiding your wedding right now_ , to  _Maybe if I change my phone number you'll forget I exist_.

He was just digging himself a deeper hole each time he didn't pick up the calls, he  _knew_ , but as much as he loved Isabel he just had to be in the right mood to deal with her. How Farlan did it all the time, (and was willing to do it for the rest of his life), he'd never know.

Eren twists around to give him a confused look, but Levi shoves him forward and shakes his head. "Block me from view while I pay, we can eat outsi-"

"Levi?"

 _Fuck_.

Levi's too busy grimly accepting his unlucky fate to notice the way Eren stiffens at her voice. He steps out from behind the brunette as Isabel comes barrelling toward him, eyes flashing with a range of emotions- most dangerously  _anger_.

"So you  _are_  alive! What, is your phone broken? No don't bother, I know it isn't. You should have known you can't just brush off my calls forever-"

"Isabel."

"- are you mad at me or something? You don't have to be the best man, if you really don't want, but you can't just  _ignore_ us-!"

"Isabel!"

Levi's voice raises as he snaps at her, making everyone in the vicinity turn their heads. Even the redhead herself looks a little surprised at his tone. "Give me a chance to speak."

Out of the corner of his eye, Eren sees the man Isabel was with rise out of his chair and start towards them. He pauses just within earshot as Levi starts up again, placing a hand on the bridge of his nose and squeezing.

"You're such a  _brat_ , the reason I wasn't answering my phone is because I knew you'd make a scene out of it, like you are now-  _No, stop, I'm talking right now_ \- and also because I've kind of… Had my hands full with stuff. I didn't need you over at my house, too."

"Too?" Isabel echoes, her green eyes suddenly darting to the trio beside Levi as if she just noticed their presence. Suddenly something clicks with Eren and he jerks backward, almost hitting the door.

" _You're_  that ghost!"

As they all turn to face him at the outburst, Eren glances desperately at Armin for confirmation. The only look he sends back is one of utter loss- a look that's so unfitting for him it's almost painful. Isabel looks caught somewhere between asking Eren  _what the hell_  or simply turning to Levi for an explanation, when Mikasa finally pipes up.

"Excuse my brother." she says, her voice even. "He watches too many horror flicks at night."

Levi really,  _really_ didn't give Mikasa enough credit.

Farlan takes advantage of the confusion to sneak up behind the fuming redhead and rest his chin on the top of her head, which makes Levi note with amusement that her eyes soften despite the scowl still aimed at him. Leave it to Farlan to diffuse a situation.

"What's goin' on here?"

Isabel clicks her tongue against her teeth, but doesn't bother to duck away from him. "This  _might-as-well-be-a-stranger_  walked into here, and I was just doing some old catching up."

The look she sends Levi could make plants shrivel up and die, but he knows that there's no real malice behind it. Farlan sighs, moving from behind her to stand beside. "Haven't you bugged him enough, with the 20-some phone calls?"

She scoffs. "Just whose side are you on here, anyway?'

"Neither. The poor, abused groom's side that has to play mediator between you two, actually."

"Oh, good, why don't you go start up a movement against grooms that have to side with their brides during arguments." she slides away from him a few inches, and he's relieved to see that somehow, nothing has changed between them despite the romance. "I just wanted to know why he was avoiding us."

"And I told you."

" _Shh_ , Levi, this argument isn't with you!" she turns away from Farlan and snaps, making Levi roll his eyes.

"But it's  _about_ me?"

She narrows her eyes dangerously and turns back to snap at Farlan some more, with Levi adding in a comment every so often and eliciting another snarky response from the girl. Armin, Eren and Mikasa all watch this with varying levels of confusion and interest, before Armin finally sighs.

"They all seem close."

Eren almost asks Armin to repeat himself as his eyes dart back to the other trio, still bickering. But he realizes what he said is true- arguing in the middle of a pizza public place or not, there's no venom behind any of the snarky comments or glares. By the end of it, Farlan and Isabel are even grinning, albeit the latter somewhat mischievously.

"So you're still going to be the best man?"

"Were you not listening at all? Trim the hairs growing out of your ears, Isabel. Of course I am."

She makes a short  _tsk_ noise, crossing her arms over her chest. "I don't have hair growing out of my ears! And good, don't forget to bring a date. You can't be  _that_ loser. Bring Hange if you have to."

"I'm not bringing them anywhere."

"Then figure something else out. That's your problem, not mine. Also, hey, who are the kids?"

Her eyes flicker back to the other trio, and Levi whips around as if he just remembered their original purpose here. He pales as he fishes for an excuse, obviously not prepared for that question.

"... Family friends. They're staying with me for awhile."

" _Oh_?"

Levi frowns at the sound of her voice as she scans the three closely for the first time.

"Yes. And that's it, Isabel. This is Mikasa, Eren, Armin."

"I didn't even imply anything else." she nods at each of them as he introduces them begrudgingly, as if it was the last thing on Earth he wanted to do. "Hey, if you guys are already here, why don't we eat together? That way we could-"

"Our food is going take-out." Levi interrupts her before she can even finish her sentence. "We'll have to catch up some other time, Isabel."

She doesn't look totally convinced, but lets it go anyway. "Fine. Now you owe me times two." directing her attention back toward the three behind him, she adds, "And you two are welcome to come to my wedding too, as long as you'll still be in town next month!"

"... We don't have anywhere else to go." Mikasa answers honestly, and Levi internally groans. Why is she only good at picking up what she needs to say  _half_ of the time…?

Isabel doesn't look like she thinks anything of it though as she nods back. "Great! You're all invited, no matter what Mr Grump over there says. The more the merrier."

Casting one last look over the three of them, she turns back to Levi and wraps her arms around him. "And you, stop being so distant, 'cause we miss ya and I haven't gotten to see you much lately."

"Alright, alright." he backs up out of her grasp, suddenly remembering they were in public again. "We need to order before we cause more of a scene. I'll talk to you guys later."

"And answer your phone calls?"

"And answer my phone calls."

With a satisfied grin, Isabel bounces back to her table with Farlan not too far behind.

x

When they get home, Levi writes a sticky note to himself and leaves it on his desk- _Don't ever go back to that pizza place again_. After what the employees saw, he doubts he'd even need reminding, but just in case.

"... So, were they friends of yours?"

Levi wishes he could say he's surprised to see Eren in the doorway to his office again, but with the teen's recent habit of following him around he's really not. He sighs.

"Yeah. We go way back."

"And they're dating each other? Doesn't that make your friendship a little weird?" it almost isn't even worded as a question, as if there's no doubt to it at all. Levi sends Eren a look as the other enters the room and sits down in his usual place.

The fact that Eren has a  _usual place_  in  _his_ office makes him frown.

"Not really. They don't act all that different."

Eren sends him a look like he doesn't believe him, and Levi's about two seconds from kicking him out and sentencing him to another lonely night of romantic comedies by himself when he speaks up again. "I guess I thought it'd be weird, cuz, if Armin and Mikasa started dating or something… I just wouldn't want to be the third wheel left out without anyone."

Levi makes a little noise in the back of his throat, one that could almost be mistaken for a laugh. "Eren Jaeger, are you trying to imply that I'm jealous or lonely? Hange and you three are handfuls enough as-is, I'm already too busy for anything like that."

Eren is silent after that, making Levi frown after a few moments of absolutely no response. "Oh, Jesus. I mentioned romance again and put your brain into overdrive. Do you want my debit card so you can go rent more romantic comedies and get it out of your system again?"

Either Eren doesn't notice the mocking tone in Levi's voice, or just ignores it as he shakes his head. "I don't need to get anything out of my system! I was just comparing it to my own situation, that's all. I figured it'd be weird."

"It's different for you. Good to know you don't want your sister and best friend to fuck though, that makes you considerably more normal than I thought you were."

Eren releases a strangled noise. "Don't put it like that!"

"You're the one putting way too much thought into this. Is that some sort of character flaw I should fix?" Levi teases, not even trying to suppress his smile now.

Eren scowls, silent again, before finally looking down.

"... Can you do that?"

Levi drops his smile

"Can you fix us? Change us by writing it on paper?"

"You don't need to be fixed or changed." Is what Levi settles on, choosing to leave out the lurching guilt that pounced on him at the thought of altering a living, breathing person's personality like removing stuffing from a rag doll.

"... You could still try it though"

Levi looks up to meet Eren's eye again, frowning. Was Eren dissatisfied with a part of his personality? Levi tried not to take it too personally, even if he was the one that tailored said personality in the first place. He sensed an undercurrent of emotions within the boy that he wasn't prepared to delve into right now. There was even challenge in his voice.  _Do it,_ it nudged,  _you've already created us, why not go all the way and see how much more you can do?_

"... o." he mumbled, turning back toward his desk. Eren tilted his head.

"No." He said, trying hard to keep his voice from wavering again. Eren took a step back, and didn't make a move to try and reply, but the strained atmosphere is unrelenting.

"We have to go meet Hange at the airport tomorrow. It's late. Go sleep."

There's a pause again, before Eren nods.

"... Yeah. Good night, Levi."

But Levi doesn't sleep that night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> changing all the chapter titles to fall out boy song lyrics because my beta suggested it to me back when i first did it and i was like nooo i cant do that and now she wont stop sending the edited word files to me with fall out boy names haha. i GIVE I GIVE.
> 
> sorry for slow updates! been busy preparing for college (and maybe replaying persona 3 and 4. that's also a possibility) thank all of you guys for being patient and not spamming me with WHEN ARE YOU GONNA UPDATE, though. :)


	5. you take the full, full truth and you pour it out

Airports always made Levi semi-nauseous, and it wasn’t because he hated flying.

 He’s reminded of this as he walks into the high-ceilinged airport terminal. On his far left, by the Arrival Hall, a girl dashes into the arms of a boy that his luggage is knocked out of his hand. To his right, a woman shuffles by, sniffling with tears pooling in her eyes. Goodbyes are hard, but reunions are even harder to watch when you’re missing someone.

 He’s been there.

 He averts his gaze from the happy couple and glares at his watch, tapping a foot impatiently. Hange’s flight was delayed by ten minutes, and while sitting in the car and just waiting for them was feasible theoretically, being stuck in a car with Eren for even a few minutes longer was enough incentive to ditch the warmth of his car for the chill of the winter night.

 “They just…. They just lift up and go?”

_Mind your blood pressure Levi, remember what the doctor said._

 “Yes.”

 Eren has his cheek pressed against the window, staring intently outside and fogging up the windows with his breath (He’d had to sterilize the window _again_ ).

 “They have wheels too? So they’re flying cars, right? Man, Armin should have come, he would eat this up!”

 “Remind me to never let you watch Blade Runner.”

 Levi had a sneaking suspicion that both Armin and Mikasa had copped out on purpose, picking up on his dread for the airport. Mikasa suddenly had to cover for a conveniently ill co-worker and Armin was overcome with an inexplicable, immitigable urge to read every book in Levi’s library from cover to cover.

 All within five minutes at the mere mention of an airport trip.

  _I’m an Award-winning author_ ; Levi groused silently, _I haven’t had to babysit clueless little brats who play 20 Questions since bellbottoms were in fashion._

 Eren finally pulls himself away from the window and turns back toward Levi. “Too bad Armin didn’t come. I think he would have been pretty jazzed.”

 He settles down onto a seat and rests his chin in the palms of his hands as Levi watches wearily. He’d brought some paper to continue writing on in rare moments of peace like this, but couldn’t quite bring himself to do it. Airports were too charged for him, for a lack of a better word. The reverberating bellows of giant engines and the electricity fizzing in the air from the people themselves were enough to wear at his concentration, and even if he managed to focus for more than five minutes, he’s be running the risk of Eren wandering off on his own.

It was stupid, for someone who had his muses quite literally in front of him, how little writing he’d actually got done.

“Do we get to go onto the plane to meet Hange?” Another question. Eren’s voice actually had a hint of hopefulness to it. Too bad.

“No. They’ll come here and see us, and then scream from all the way across the airport. It’ll be hard to miss.” Levi responds, drumming his fingers against a nearby table. Eren nods, like he’s starting to catch on to how obnoxious Hange really is. Yeah right. He’s compelled to ask the next question before he can stop himself, maybe in his own lame attempt to get Eren to stop asking all the questions. “How did you sleep last night?”

Eren blinks once, twice, confusion written all over his face. “Uh,” he starts, “Okay I guess? I mean, it’s not like there are a lot of disturbances around here. Why? Did you sleep okay?”

Levi shifts in his chair. “Just wondering if you had nightmares or anything.” he ignores the last part of the question, because he’s never really slept “okay” and the bags under his eyes are proof.

“Oh, like, of my past?”

If that was even the word for it, considering it never really happened. “Yeah. Soldiers here get that too, PTSD, they call it.” Levi says. “Curious if it ever bothers you.”

The teen looks contemplative for a moment, eyebrows furrowed and for a moment Levi wondered if he’d touched on a thorny subject.It was a rare sight to see the boy searching his thoughts. Sometimes Levi almost doubted the boy was capable of sustained rational thought. Comical as it was, Levi finds himself entranced in watching his expression.

“I don’t think I’ve had any dreams about titans or anything since I’ve been here, actually.”

Levi frowns. That was sort of odd, considering that he hadn’t been ‘here’ for that long, and technically had years of background novel-wise. “Not even any peaceful dreams? Of before the walls--”

“LEEEVI YOU ACTUALLY CAAAAAME!”

The screech from afar was loud enough to make the two of them visibly jump, both concentration and conversation now broken.

 _Impeccable timing as always_ , Levi thinks bitterly, standing up and braces for impact as Hange charges at them full-speed.

 

x

 

The knock at the door comes unexpected, breaking Armin out of his trance. He sets down his tablet after flicking away the article he was reading. It was another dead end anyway.

He’s frittered away the better part of the afternoon reading up on useless accounts of writers with their characters “coming to life”. Most of them were purely metaphorical, of course, Armin realized woefully after he had the misfortune of chancing upon an orgy of masturbatory, self-insert fiction following a misguided Google search. They were almost hedonic in their depictions of unrealistically epic (and quite possibly illegal) fornications, and he was sure that even the entirety of Commander Pixis’ alcohol cabinet wouldn’t be enough to forget that anytime soon.

He shuffles to the door, pulling it open somewhat cautiously-- and almost slamming it back shut on reflex.

He forces himself to meet the visitor’s eyes as the door pulls open. He’d never seen the ocean himself, but if they froze over, _crystallized_ , they’d look exactly like the uniformed officer’s eyes before him. If he wasn’t so caught off guard, he might have laughed at the irony.

If she recognizes him at all, her face doesn’t give it away.

“Hi, I’m from the local police department. We’re checking in on everybody in the neighborhood on account of a spotted suspicious person lurking around.” her voice is monotone, as if this is the 20th time she’s recited this just today. She moves a hand up to brush her blonde bangs out of her eyes. “You wouldn’t happen to have heard anything, would you?”

“... Sorry, I haven’t.” he keeps his voice level, willing himself to put on a fake concerned face.

“Can I have a description of what they look like so I can keep an eye out?”

She nods, pulling out a piece of folded-up paper from her pocket. “Let’s see…” her eyes follow the words on the page as she reads them aloud. “Suspect was last seen loitering around the pizzeria down Gourmet Avenue on Thursday, 1800 hours. Male, average height, light brown short shaggy hair and eyes. Here’s the sketch...”

The blonde officer turns the paper around and miraculously, Armin manages not to gasp. That was, without a doubt, Jean -- with the wrong nose. Ah, well. They were close.

“Oh, thank you. I’ll be sure to keep a look out.” He makes sure not to give away his surprise and she seems to buy it, folding the paper back up and slipping it into her pocket. Internally, he breathes a sigh of relief.

“Thank you. Please contact us if you find out any more information or spot him.” as she steps off the porch, he frowns.

“I certainly will. Thank you so much for your service, Officer ...”

She pauses, turning back around to face him.

“Officer Leonhardt is fine.”

 

x

 

When Levi and Eren return, Hange among them, Armin is practically in a tizzy. He’s speaking so fast that Levi and Eren can hardly keep up, only catching certain words strung together -- “Annie here”, “Jean”, “police officer”.

Hange, on the other hand, hears every word and gasps at the end of it all.

“But-- Levi, you didn’t write them into existence yet, did you!?”

He blinks, dumbfounded. “What-- _Who_?”

“Annie and Jean, of course! Weren’t you listening? Anyway, I thought that you had to make the character sheet of them, first, unless you did and didn’t tell me? But you should have known--”

“What, stop!”

They turn their attention onto Levi, “Jean and Annie can’t exist; I haven’t created them. Armin, you’re sure you saw them?”

Armin nods. “I saw Annie, in the flesh. She didn’t act like she knew who I was. She had a sketch of Jean with her, and I know it was him. It looked just like him, well... Except for the nose.” he pauses. “And… Before she left she said she was ‘Officer Leonhardt’.”

Levi doesn’t even pretend not to look skeptical. “That’s impossible.”

“You think I’d lie about something like that?” Armin shoots back.

Tension hangs in the air, heavy and stifling, before Hange rolls her shoulder and remarks nonchalantly, “Well, this isn’t the weirdest thing that’s happened to us, is it? It can wait till after dinner.”

Their tone begs no argument and Hange none-too-gently pulls Eren out the apartment by his shoulder. “Grab your jacket and let’s go, Armin!” They call as they make their way down the hall.

Levi hangs behind, weary and perhaps just a little nervous, “Armin. You’re…You’re positive you weren’t -- dreaming or something? That this actually happened?”

“Absolutely.”

Levi pinches the bridge of his nose, already feeling a headache coming on.

“...We’ll discuss this over dinner. But we’re running out of time. We have to find our little fugitive before Officer Leonhardt does.” he couldn’t imagine trying to bail out a character from his book. It’d be a logistical nightmare, to say the least.

“Eren, No!” Hange’s shriek cuts through the night. Levi rushes to the hallway just in time to see the familiar dull green of Eren’s coat disappear around the corner. Armin takes one look over the parapet and groans, pushing a hand into his frazzled blonde hair.

“Oh, no.”

 

x

 

They pick Mikasa up, attempting to explain the situation to her as quickly as possible. To her credit, she remains calm until they finish.

 “He’s at the police station.” she says, without missing a beat. Armin nods.

 “I thought so too.”

Hange frowns, turning around in the front seat to look at the two in the back as they pile into the car. “What do you think he’s gonna do? Confront her?”

Mikasa looks pensive, shaking her head. “I doubt it. That’s reckless even by Eren’s standards. Maybe that’s what he had in mind when he ran off, but I bet he just wants to see her and confirm for himself.”

“But running up to a police station like that is still suspicious.” Armin chews on his lower lip as Levi tries to drive as fast as he can, avoiding being pulled over. “Even if he bursts in there and loses all nerve, there’s going to be questions asked--”

“We’ll worry about that when we get there.” Levi growls. The station isn’t far, but to avoid traffic means taking backroads. He narrowly avoids hitting a squirrel that jumps in front of the car, swerving harshly. Hange lets out a wheeze.

“If we make it there in one piece…”

 

x

 

They pull into the police station parking lot in five minutes, tense and worried before they find Eren standing there. He’s frozen, and Levi is a little more than relieved that Mikasa and Armin were right about him not running in full-steam ahead.

 “Eren.” Mikasa is the first one out, and he turns to look at her. The normally expressive boy remains silent, his face completely blank, unreadable even to Levi, who takes pride in reading other’s expressions. She steps forward and Eren flinches slightly. Mikasa looks uncertain, hands stretched out and open in a universal gesture of ‘I won’t hurt you’ as she approaches him slowly. Mikasa steadies herself and calls out to him again.

“Eren, leave it be. At least until we figure out what’s going on.”

Eren blinks, and then scowls. “I just want to see. If it’s really her.”

Armin slowly exits the car, stepping onto the pavement and walking to Mikasa with measured steps. A life fraught with explosive situations tells Levi that they’re going to be causing a scene soon -- the parking lot is practically deserted, save for a few cars scattered around, and it was starting to get dark.

“Eren, think about it, if you go in there without a reason it’ll be really suspicious,” Armin tries. When Eren stubbornly refuses to make eye contact and continues staring at the police station sign, Armin continues. “We’ll come back, Eren, I promise, but now we need to find Jean before the sun sets. He might not have anywhere to stay.”

Eren scoffs. “If he’s been out there anyway, one more night won’t hurt him. And anyway--”

“I’m sorry, what’s going on out here?”

There’s a figure standing at the entrance to the station now, and as Levi recognizes it he sharply inhales. He shouldn’t be surprised anymore, but he can’t help but be amazed by how accurate she is to the one in his own mind.

Mikasa purses her lips, as Armin flounders for an excuse. At a loss, for once, Eren stays completely silent. Annie scans them once more, eyes lighting up with recognition. She focuses on Armin first.

“You’re the person I talked to earlier, correct? About the suspicious person?” she moved her gaze, only briefly glancing at Eren before moving on. “Mikasa? What are you all doing here?”

 The only person who looks unsurprised by the other knowing her name is Mikasa herself, who simply straightens up. “Officer. Sorry for bothering you. This is Eren, my brother,” she gave a slightly pause, “and Armin, our friend. We were just taking a walk around when we got lost and decided to wait here.”

 “Oh, I see. Yeah, the town can be a bit tricky to navigate when you’re new. Nice to meet you two.” her eyes soften as she smiles, but she doesn’t offer her hand to shake. “And those two in the car there are…?”

 “The people we called to pick us up.” Mikasa smiles genuinely. “We figured the police station would be a good, safe spot to wait. Sorry for making a racket, I hope we didn’t disturb anyone.”

“Think nothing of it. Since your ride is here, I won’t keep you. Nice seeing you again, Mikasa.”

She nods at the blonde as they climb in the car. “Always a pleasure, Annie.”

Once the doors were firmly shut, Levi starts the engine again and pulls out of the parking lot. Taking the other way home, no one speaks for the first few minutes. Levi was the first to break the silence.

“Mikasa, what the fuck?”

 They drive in silence for a good fifteen minutes, Levi at the wheel and Armin calling shotgun. The car is still cold from the winter air, and the heater seems uncooperative tonight. Hange shivers between Mikasa and Eren in the backseat, but both don’t seem to mind, too caught up in their thoughts.

 Levi takes his eyes off the road and observes Mikasa for a moment through the rearview mirror. Contrite like a child caught with her hand in the cookie jar, she continues to keep her eyes on her hands.

 “You two seemed pretty friendly,” he begins, and Mikasa remains stiffly silent. Hange huffs, displeased at Levi for pursuing the matter before dinner. “When did you meet her and why the hell didn’t you tell us?”

 Mikasa opens her mouth as if to speak, then pauses, before starting, halting and hesitant. Armin, Hange and Eren keep their eyes down; the air in the car seems too thick to breathe.

 “She comes into the cafe a lot on her breaks -- almost every day, in fact. I end up waiting on her a lot."

 Mikasa pauses and looks at Levi's face, as though checking if she's given up enough information to placate him.

 Levi doesn't have to shoot her a glare through the mirror before she continues.

 “I never said anything because I kept a close eye on her. There was no need to create unnecessary panic.”

 She sees Levi shake his head in almost paternal disappointment. Eren doesn’t look any better, almost like he’s about to throw up, eyes fixed in front of him. She frowns, and continues before anyone interjects.

 “She’s not a threat. I have no idea how or why, but she doesn’t know anything about where we came from. She says she was born here, went to school here,--“

 “So she says” Armin says, and Hange places a hand on his shoulder, as if to restrain him from joining the fray.

 “She went to police training school in Haddock City, the one near the quay, and now she’s an officer here. She showed me her ID, alright? Everything adds up!”

 Mikasa feels herself bristling, but no one in the car responds, or even moves.

 “She’s not lying.”

 And when no one replies, she leans forward, right by Levi’s ear, and says through clenched teeth, “I know! I’ve been talking to her and I can tell! I’ve never been wrong about these things! Ask Eren! Ask Armin!”

 Levi continues driving with his eyes fixed on the road, suddenly the model of road safety. Mikasa stares at him with wide eyes, but Levi’s squared shoulders and frowning lips give away nothing. The car is silent.

 “Well?”

 It sounds more like a plea than she had wished it to.

 Hange decides that enough is enough, and gently pulls Mikasa back into her seat.

 “We’re all hungry and tired, let’s get som—“

 “You’re protecting her” Eren pipes up from the other end of the backseat, lifting his head to face her. It doesn’t come out like an accusation, surprisingly, coming from Eren. It sounds more like a genuine question. But Mikasa doesn’t let down her guard.

 “I’m not protecting her; If anything, I was protecting you! Stopping you from doing something stupid like _running toward the police station_.”

 “I wasn’t going to do anything stupid!” Eren protests and reddens when everyone in the car scoffs (in varying degrees of volume). “I wasn’t. I just… Wanted to see it for myself! Anyway, I’ve seen enough movies now to know where this is going – and you’re making a mistake!”

 “Oh, mighty _all-knowing guru of 80s chick flicks_ , please impart your wisdom!”

 “I’ll have you know I have a healthy selection of romantic documentaries from the black and white era to present day!” Eren screeches in a pitch reminiscent of his prepubescent days. “I practically watched Mila Kunis grow up!”

 Levi makes an irritated noise, like a strangled sigh. “Both of you stop!” after a few beats of silence, he continues, “Eren, I’m confiscating the television. Mikasa. You’re positive she has no idea about anything?”

 “Yes.” there is no doubt in her voice. He sighs again.

 “Fine. Keep an eye on her when she comes into your work but it sounds like she’s fine on her own. Now, this is the plan after dinner. Eren and I will take the car and search the perimeter of the city. I’m not trusting roadrunner here to go anywhere without strict adult supervision”

 Eren rolls his eyes and Levi ignores the childish display of petulance.

“Hange, go through the central business district, poke around and ask if anyone has seen him. Mikasa and Armin, the area near the woods. With any luck our friend has resorted to scavenging like a squirrel or something”

“STOP THE CAR STOP THE CAR!” Armin screeches a block away from the diner, and Levi slams on the brakes.

And there, in the nipping cold of winter, stood a half-naked Jean attempting to barter trade his shirt for some dinner.

 

x

 

“Huh. That _does_ sound weird.”

They’ve opted to go home and order take-out instead. Famished and more than a little exhausted, the night is beginning to seem like a unnecessarily infuriating RPG game titled “Hange’s quest for a decent dinner”.

They all sit in Levi’s living room, lounging around on the furniture. While the rest of them seem somewhat enthralled, Eren lays belly-down on the long couch, only half listening. Mikasa nudges him, but he ignores her and casts a forlorn gaze upon the television.

“Yeah. It sort of feels like I’m living a double life, or something.” Jean explains indulgently, preening at the attention they were giving him. “The memories of then feel like… An extremely vivid dream, like the kind you can’t tell are a dream or not after you wake up. But I still have memories of my childhood in this city… What a headache.” Jean massages his temples in an exaggerated motion of distress. If there were a chaise lounge in the vicinity, Eren was sure Jean would fling himself upon it and bemoan his fate.

Armin frowns and pats Jean’s hand in sympathy.

“So you were looking for us when someone called the police on you?”

Jean nods. He’s wearing Eren’s hoodie and slacks now. Levi wouldn’t allow him to touch any of the furniture before a shower after learning that Jean had gone four days without one.

“I understand why, since I was lurking around. I didn’t know which house you guys were at.”

“How did you know where we were at all?”

 He puffs out his chest, a gesture of pride somewhat underwhelmed by the baggy hoodie. “Something like instinct, maybe? Well, I overheard people in my office talking about some video they saw. About some hubbub in a pizzeria, and the description sounded just like you guys”.

 He turned to Eren’s prone form. “The moment I heard about a brown-haired kid that looked like an aggravated Chihuahua, I knew it was you guys. I watched it and that confirmed it, so I drove down to this city as quickly as I could.”

 Eren snorts. “Sounds like you’re full of shit.”

 “I’m sorry, did the boy who didn’t survive for a week in an unknown territory all by himself say something?”

“You were out there for three days, four if we’re stretching the truth. And cut the bullshit, Horse Grylls, you weren’t exactly doing great if you were trying to get food by selling the clothes off your back”

Levi had to bite his tongue to stifle a snicker at that. Finally speaking up, he takes a sip of his coffee and focuses back on Jean. “Well, at least you have memories of this world so you’re not as incompetent as the three stooges here. But I don’t have any more rooms, so unless some of you are gonna room together--”

“-- Actually, I have my own place.” Jean interjects. Levi raises an eyebrow, but it does make sense, if he’s been living here all his life like he claims.

“It’s far from here, two days drive from here, but I should be able to rent another one soon around here. Once I heard my co-workers say something about you guys, I had to drop everything to come here to find you guys. Didn’t count on someone mugging me of my car and possessions on the first day I got here though” Jean concludes with a wry smile.

He pauses and takes a sip from his coffee, “... You know, it’s hard to believe that you made me up a few months ago when I’ve lived my entire life here.”

“And it’s hard for me to believe you exist at all, so I guess we’re fair.”

Eren glances between Levi and Jean a few times, frowning, before Levi excuses himself. “I’m going to go take an Advil and sit in my office. You guys can figure this one out amongst yourselves.”

Eren watches as he gets up from his seat and heads into the hallway. The others watch Levi leave before turning back to their conversation. He tunes them out, makes a half-hearted excuse about using the washroom and sneaks off to follow Levi.

 

x

 

He finds him sitting at his desk, and shuts the door behind him as he enters. Levi turns around to look at him, and if he’s surprised Eren followed he doesn’t show it on his face.

“You don’t seem interested in Jean’s story.”

Eren shrugs, a short raise-and-drop of his shoulders. “Dunno if I believe him.”

Levi turns to his desk and taps a pen against it.

“You don’t want to believe him.”

“That’s right, Freud.” and Levi wonders where he even learnt about the crackpot neurologist . “It doesn’t seem fair, is what I’m saying. He gets memories of here, and those back home as well. He gets how this world works – and actually, so do Mikasa and Armin – but I’m just left lost.”

Levi is silent for a moment, turning the chair back around to face him. He doesn’t look angry, or even particularly upset, just tired. Drained.

He sympathized.

“Determination will pull you through. Yeah, maybe you broke the toaster that one time because you thought it was witchcraft, but you got the hang of it after a few tries didn’t you? You’re willing to do it again and again, no matter how many times it takes.”

Eren stares at him, silent, as Levi rests his cheek in his hand, elbow on the armrest.

“Is that what you wrote me as? ‘Determined’, I mean. Because it doesn’t feel like it right now”

“Yeah, well, all dynamic characters have to feel that way at some point.” he almost feels smug at the thought, but stops the oncoming smirk at Eren’s face.

“If you could get rid of us, right now, you would. Wouldn’t you?”

It’s not phrased as a question, the tail end tacked on as though Eren had already decided this for himself. Don’t look like that, he wants to say. Of course I would; you don’t belong here, this isn’t your house, this isn’t your home.

But even though he opens his mouth, a thought throws him off guard: he wouldn’t. If he discovered that he could will them away this instant, he wouldn’t bring himself to do so. He thinks of the migraines, the broken appliances, the sky-high bill on rented videos and e-books. He’s become fond of them, he realizes. He hasn’t woken up to silence in weeks; he hasn’t had a lonely dinner since they arrived either.

He’s come to enjoy their company. The realization confuses him.

“You don’t have to spare my feelings, I get it.”

Levi blinks at Eren, remembering he was still waiting for an answer. He knows on some level that if he told the truth, Eren would think him a liar, why wouldn’t he? So Levi spins around on his chair waves a hand dismissively. “I haven’t thought about it. It doesn’t matter anyway, since it doesn’t look like any of you are going anywhere anytime soon.” Just the opposite, more like. “I have other things to think about.”

Eren doesn’t push the issue. “I guess.”

Levi twirls the pen in his other hand. “Anything else you need to get off your chest?”

“Maybe the part about Mikasa hiding what she knew, but that’s not your fault either.”

He hums. The revelation had shocked him, but it’s worn off. In retrospect, he can’t say it was all that surprising.

“You’re all getting harder to read. Maybe that’s just the way you all adapt.”

“Have we? Even me?”

His voice seems to say that he isn’t pouting anymore, which Levi counts as an accomplishment.

“You’re still an open book, but you have your moments. I only worry about your mood swings”

Eren snorts at that and Levi smiles privately.

“Anything else?”

Eren chews his lip for a second, “No., but, uh…” he squirms, moving his weight from side-to-side. “I don’t want to go back out there, so…”

“Sit.”

The other does what he’s told, sitting in the same chair he always does whenever he’s in here. “And don’t talk. I don’t need any distractions right now. I’m way behind on my writing and while Hange and the others listen to Jean’s braying I’m going to get some done, better late than…”

“... Never?” Eren offered helpfully. Levi doesn’t respond, shuffling through the desk drawer.

“It’s not here.”

“What?”

He’s panicking now, flipping through papers before slamming his drawer shut. He opens another drawer and ransacks its contents until he’s gone through all the drawers in his table. Eren stands up and take cautious steps towards Levi.

“I didn’t take them out, Hange gave them back right after they read them so where –“

His breathing has gone erratic and he can’t stop the slight tremble in his hands. He’s kept them safe, so where?

“Levi?”

“Everything.” he tries to keep his voice level, but he can tell it was raising. “The draft I was working on, the character sheets, everything’s—everything’s _gone_.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter was just PLOT PLOT PLOT. no filler here dang
> 
> oh!! if you see any errors please tell me, for some reason formatting this to AO3 was hell (maybe because i havent done it in so long) so if there's anything that looks like a missing word, (or god forbid sentence) tell me so i can fix it
> 
> thanks for reading guys!! and as always, thanks to my beta.
> 
> EDIT: i see my italics are gone because of COURSE they are. im gonna try and add them back where I remember, so bear with me if anything seems off until i can go back in later and really fix it.

**Author's Note:**

> buckle up friend's we're in for a RIDE
> 
> as always, extra special super duper thanks to jerri (teajing) for beta'ingand making it funny. she's hilarious and her pieces she injects are always hilarious.


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